Anywhere But Here
by Crystallinee
Summary: Human AU. Pink Diamandis, the sheltered heiress to a multi-million dollar business empire, decides to break free from her heritage. But her new identity as Rose comes at a very high cost. Years later, can the hurt be mended by a motherless little boy? Blue/Yellow Diamond, Rose/Pearl, Pink Diamond, White Diamond, Bellow Diamond, Rupphire.
1. Part 1

**Anywhere But Here  
**

 **PART ONE**

 _Hate to go so soon_  
 _This has to be the end_  
 _You won't see me again_  
 _The far side of the moon **  
 **\- Far Side of The Moon,** Tinashe**_

* * *

Pearl didn't want to remember her like this. Face lowered, covered by her messy hair as she crouched down in the soil. Her usual spark had diminished, she seemed lost again, as if she was just waiting for her mothers to discover what she was doing and pick her up and take her home to safety.

In her small hands was the knife, covered with her blood. Pink placed the weapon in the ground, smearing the liquid from her fingertip all over the blade. The night sky watched above, guarding their secret.

"This will change everything," Pearl said, somewhat hoping she would realize what she was about to do. "After this, we can never go back." But there was not a single trace of doubt in Pink's wide eyes when she looked up.

"Pretty convincing, right?" She placed the little diamond necklace – the one she got at her birth - next to the weapon, casually as if she was preparing a picnic and not staging a murder. "We need to burn these clothes and leave the remains to be found."

The ground had shifted beneath them, but Pink smiled despite it all. "From now on we're free. Doesn't it feel nice?"

.

 **Four Months Earlier**

"Faster, Pearl! Let's take that corner!"

Her bright calls were heard across the street, disrupting the afternoon peace. Neighbors looked out of their windows as they buzzed by.

"Who needs a car for this?" She laughed as her hair flew into her face.

"Wait –" Pearl grimaced seconds before the segway crashed into a street lamp and sent them both flying to the ground. Pearl landed in a bush and sat up, rubbing her arm. "Are you okay?"

Pink blinked a few times. "That was amazing!" She jumped up, mindless of the bruise on her face and her scraped knees. She pulled Pearl back onto her feet. "Let's get this thing back on the road!"

"I don't think we should –"

"Come on, Pearl! Just one more time!"

Smitten by her mood, Pearl smiled. "This was actually fun."

"I knew you could do it!"

Just as the two of them pulled up to Pink's house, a voice cut through the air.

"What do you think you're doing, Pink?"

Rolling down the window of her shiny SUV, Yellow Diamandis looked sternly at them. Her secretary looked equally sour in the backseat, peering at them through the toned windows.

Yellow pulled into the driveway with flawless precision and speed, before she was out of the car in one steady movement. She walked over and examined Pink's bruises, before her narrowed eyes moved to the segway and only lingered momentarily on Pearl's flustered face.

She turned back to her daughter, frowning. "You could have been seriously hurt, using that thing! Be thankful you didn't get a concussion. Don't you have better things to do?" She marched into the house with her secretary following behind her.

"Sorry," Pink mumbled and met Pearl's gaze, then giggled quietly. Pearl smiled sheepishly back at her.

They followed Yellow into the enormous three-story villa, past the perfectly trimmed gardens and monuments symbolizing the great Diamandis family.

Blue met them in the kitchen. "Were you the one causing that ruckus before, Pink?" she asked and lifted her chin, checking for signs of injury. "Look at you, your face is bruised!"

"I'm fine!" Pink backed away.

Yellow sat down by the marble counter and poured herself a cup of black coffee. "Have you prepared everything for your graduation, Pink?"

"Yes!"

Pink fluffed her hair up and smiled at her best friend. "I decided what I want for my graduation present. I want to travel with Pearl, and sing on stage!"

Yellow and Blue exchanged a look. "We've talked about this," Blue said softly. "Now is not a good time."

She walked over to her wife and kissed her cheek. "How was work, darling?"

Yellow sighed and sipped her coffee. "Someone named Peri quit today," she said with narrowed eyes. "Called me and demanded to get _paid_ vacation, when she's only worked for five years! Not to mention she had strong opinions on the way we run things _._ Talking about _resources_ and such nonsense." She glared at her drink for a moment. "I fired her at once. I should sue her for slander."

Blue massaged her tense shoulders, and Yellow put a hand on her forearm, stroking it.

"Mom, I said I've made up my mind! I'm going to travel!"

"Not now, Pink."

She sipped her orange juice with a bored expression. "Pearl, let's go on a road trip!"

Yellow looked up at her. "Let Pearl drive this time. I'm not replacing your car if you wreck this one too. And make sure to be back for dinner. Your grandmother is coming for a visit."

"What?" A sinking feeling settled in Pink. "She's coming _today_?"

Blue gave a small nod, turning away. Yellow made a gesture at her secretary Amarilla, a thin and blonde woman, who came in with a stack of documents in her arms. "I want those sorted before tonight."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Pink pulled Pearl with her to the garage. "I hate it when she ignores me," she muttered. "You can stay for dinner later, my moms won't mind."

Pearl stepped into the driver's seat of Pink's hot pink cab. "Where do you wanna go?"

"Anywhere you want!"

Blue watched through the kitchen window as they drove off. "They grow so fast," she sighed. "I remember when she reached to my knees and stumbled around, refusing to leave me for a moment." She smiled tenderly.

"I remember when I had to bribe her driving instructor to get her that license," Yellow muttered. "I'm not sure if Pearl is a good influence on her."

Blue looked at her favorite family photo of the three of them, fastened on the kitchen wall. "I think she is ready for this responsibility." She felt tearful at the thought, proud of what was to come.

.

The tall, older woman that stepped out of her limousine always gave Pink chills. She had bright white, pointy hair and an equally powdered pale face, matched with heavy jewelry and dark lipstick. When she looked at them underneath her heavy lashes, Pink felt the need to hide from her unrelenting gaze. She always wore high heels, like Yellow. Her handmaid Blanca followed after, never uttering a word, only smiling despite the scar across her face making her look odd.

"Hello, Starlight!" she called with a wide smile, spreading her arms. "Come give me a kiss!"

Pink swallowed but slowly walked forward after a look from Yellow. She stepped into the embrace of Whitney Diamandis and let her cheeks be pinched harshly.

"Yellow told me _all_ about your grades."

Her mothers followed behind to greet the guest. Blue smiled faintly while Yellow stepped forward, acting like a barrier between her mother and her wife.

The dinner was awkward, to say the least. Blue's maid served the food while Whitney with her loud and cheerful voice seemed to dominate the very oxygen in the room. She talked about government politics and the family corporation while Yellow tried to keep up, and Blue tried to keep the conversation from turning into an argument.

Not only did Pink find politics utterly boring, she hated how her mother and grandmother spoke of others, ' _those people_ ', that didn't fit the strict mold Whitney and Yellow had deemed acceptable. She was soon silently fuming as Whitney spoke, while Pearl sat quietly and stiffly next to her and tried to look pleasant, to avoid drawing attention and possibly backlash from the older woman. Whitney had not said a single word to Pearl, and that was the thing that aggravated Pink the most.

"Well, Starlight," Whitney said after an hour's time, giving her grandchild a cold smile. Her diamond earrings shimmered in the light from the extravagant chandelier above. "Which university have you picked?"

"I haven't decided yet," Pink said calmly.

"Yes, she has," Yellow immediately interrupted. "Harvard, like me and Blue, of course. She has already been accepted."

"After graduation, Pearl and I are going to travel."

Yellow pinched the bridge of her nose tiredly. "We've already been through this, Pink!"

"I told you I want to be a singer." Pink glared at her. "I can go to college later."

"You do have a talent for singing," Blue comforted, "but you can sing in your free time."

"In what free time? You want me to study business or law!"

"Don't encourage her, Blue!" Yellow said. "Her education and work comes first."

Whitney put her wine glass down with one quiet movement, which effectively shut down the conversation.

"Now, now, Pink," she said in a falsely cheerful voice that even made Yellow stiffen. "There is no need to argue. I'm going to give you a wonderful opportunity!"

Pink looked expressionlessly at her.

"We're giving you an internship in the corporation," Whitney smiled. "You'll be working alongside Yellow."

"No, I –"

"It's decided, then," Whitney said. "Until your university courses begin this fall, you will be working full time, then weekends and evenings."

"You always said you wanted to be a CEO like Yellow when you grew up," Blue smiled encouragingly. "Now you have the perfect opportunity to gain experience! This is what you wanted, dear!"

"But –"

"Good, good," Whitney said and turned her attention back to her wine, while Blanca hurriedly moved over to refill her glass. "We're currently making a great expansion in other countries. All that unused land will be a great base for expanding our factories."

"Indeed," Yellow said authoritatively. "In fact we've never had these numbers -"

Pink stood up, her chair scraping loudly against the polished floor. "I don't want to."

"We had to reschedule several things to get you this arrangement," Yellow said sternly. "This is the best opportunity you will ever get. You will start Monday morning."

"I don't want to work for you! I have other plans! I'm old enough to decide what I want to do with my life!"

Whitney turned against her slowly, her smile as cheerful and stone-cold as ever.

"Go to your room, Pink."

Blue looked worriedly between her mother in-law and her daughter, who clenched her fists and glared at the floor. Pearl was frozen in her seat, pale as ever.

"I've read about it," Pink muttered. "They told us in school how the rain forests are being desolated for the profit of big companies like ours! And the horrible conditions of the people working in those factories! I don't want to support that!"

"Pink, that's enough," Blue said sternly, giving Whitney an anxious look.

Whitney stood up in her full length. Her smile disappeared, an expression so foreign it sent shivers down Pink's back. Her wine glass broke in her hands, spraying shattered pieces across the table linen.

"You lost your privileges for this summer, Pink. I do hope you didn't look forward to that show too much."

She tilted her head to her side and smiled wide.

.

"I hate her!" Pink slammed her door shut, with Pearl following behind her. She started packing a bag with frantic movements, opening drawers and dressers at random, unsure what to take.

"They never listen to me, they don't care about who I am, only what I'm supposed to be!" She gritted her teeth. "She can't lock me away forever."

Pearl sat down on her rose-colored bed, wishing she could say something to make it better. She had known Pink for many years and she had seen similar events before. Pearl could not remember her own family, having been in foster care all her life. Somehow Pink's family had become hers too, even if Yellow and Blue never were affectionate with her. However, they fully accepted her presence in their household and she knew they trusted her, being the only friend of their daughter.

"I'm going to that Mr. Universe show, and that old witch can't stop me!"

Then her energy faltered and she looked lost, dropping her head so her light, fluffy hair fell into her face. "Everyone in this country knows my family. Everyone will recognize me… Blue and Yellow will find out –"

Pearl stood up and took a hold of her hand. "No, they won't."

Pink looked up, her bright eyes filled with hope. "How's that?"

"Because… you change your appearance for a day!"

Her face lightened up like the sun. "Pearl, you're so smart!" She hugged her tightly before she gave a little squeal. "I'm finally gonna dye my hair pink! And I'm gonna wear a dress, and be barefoot all day!"

The next day, Pink turned in front of the mirror, examining her enormous wig and extensions – she had failed miserably with the hair dye. She had put on new clothes and removed all her usual makeup. Her skintight white dress flowed around her when she moved.

"Pink, are you –"

"Shhh – don't call me that!" she whispered and giggled like a child at the thought. "Isn't rose my color?"

Pearl thought for a moment. "Rose is perfect for you."

.

Being Rose was so different from being Pink Diamandis. Rose was confident, brave and strong. She turned eyes everywhere but for the first time in her life she was completely anonymous, and it was the sweetest freedom she had ever known.

She had told her mothers that she had gone to Pearl's home to spend the weekend. There was no one to tell her what to do, and no one to tell her no. With rosy cheeks from all the strangers she had hugged and danced with, even shared a few kisses – she embraced Pearl. "Thank you for talking me into this! I could never have done this on my own!"

On the stage, the young boy wonder Mr. Universe was playing his guitar. The audience had been much smaller than expected, but Pink had never been to a better show. She saw his dark hair flow in the air from the fans and pulled Pearl close. She had never seen her look so genuinely happy, either – Pearl's small pale face was shining with bright warmth.

This was what living felt like, doing all the things her mothers would never let her do – talking to strangers and being out late. In school, almost no one had dared to approach her, knowing she was the daughter of two of the most influential persons in the country. Those who did only wanted to be her friends for the benefit of it, and she ended up terribly alone until she found Pearl.

Now, people really _talked_ to her, took her hands, and asked what her name was as they spun her around underneath the flashing lights.

She didn't hesitate when she answered, looking at all the new friends she made.

"I'm Rose Quartz. I'm new in town."

.

That experience helped her get through the following months with the internship, doing all the tedious paperwork Yellow told her to do. Who could have known that being the chairman of a worldwide corporation could be so dull?

Yellow worked late almost every day, and Blue, being a federal judge, had her hands full as well. Pink was left alone in her free time, feeling her patience diminish. One night, with only two weeks left until her university courses started, she heard Yellow on the phone with Whitney.

"Yes, I'll see to it. Yes." Yellow hung up as Pink dashed down the stairs, past all the family photos and the fancy awards in their glass cupboard.

Seeing her parents sit in the living room with their laptops, assisted by Yellow's secretary, she walked straight in.

"I don't want to do it anymore! Sign my resignation letter right now, mom!"

Yellow looked up, her voice cutting, the one she used with her subordinates. "You will finish this internship and then go to Harvard, as planned."

"But it's wrong! This entire corporation's purpose is wrong! Don't you think I watch the news? You're _using_ people!" She looked between her parents' faces. "I'd rather do something that makes me happy!"

"This discussion is over," Yellow said, looking back at her screen.

"You are a member of the Diamandis family," Blue said softly. "Everyone's looking at you, waiting to see what you will achieve. You don't even have to do much – Whitney has prepared everything for you. In a few months, the media coverage will settle down. Just smile and wave."

She rose to her feet and stroked her daughter's face.

"Please, Mom," Pink tried, knowing she usually gave in to her wishes. "We could at least pay the employees more and move the factories from environmentally endangered areas! If I'm a member of this family I should have a say in this!"

"That's enough," Yellow snapped, rising her voice. "I will not hear another word of this nonsense."

As her mothers focused on their work again, Pink stomped back to her room. Angry tears mixed with a burning taste in her throat, searing her insides and making it hard to breathe.

She looked at the wide mirror in her room, seeing her tense and short figure reflected back, a cruel reminder of everything she should be. She was no longer the little girl she used to be, clinging to her mothers, unconcerned by the state of the world.

"Enough," she whispered, feeling her nails burrow into her fist before she drew it back and crushed the reflection of herself. Pain prickled her knuckles, a refreshing feeling that matched how she felt on the inside.

When Pearl came over later that night, and they were safe behind closed doors in her room, she told her what she had planned.

Pearl looked truly doubtful for the first time. "You know this is crazy, right?"

"You're eighteen and I'll be too in a week. We can do whatever we want!"

She was already putting on her wig and changing her clothes. "I'm going to become a singer and make music, Pearl! We can go to Empire City and have the time of our lives! And I'm going to fight to protect the environment!"

"Don't you think they will come looking for you?"

Pink – Rose – rolled her eyes. "They'll give up in a few years. They don't care who I am. I'm gonna change my name, so Whitney can't find me. You'll be free from your foster family and we can live together!"

She stopped for a moment, eyes sparkling. "Do you want to come with me?"

"Of course," Pearl said, smiling a little, then lowered her gaze. She felt uneasy, despite how much she wished for Pink's vision to come true. For years she had dreamed of running away, but she couldn't shake the feeling. "They'll be able to track you somehow. Your voice and face… Your parents have so many contacts and resources."

Pink looked down as a shadow swept past her face. "I thought about it… and there's only one way to do this. So they won't look too hard."

Coldness crept up Pearl's spine as all the previous excitement left her with a rush of air. Pink stuffed the money and necessities she needed into a small bag and then looked at the window – their only way out unnoticed. She had not brought a single personal item, not even a photograph.

"I have to disappear in a way that shows them I will never return. I never want to look back."

.

* * *

 ** _To be continued._**

 _ **Author's Note:** It's impossible for me to properly translate the entire canon Diamond/Pink/Rose drama to a human AU, with all its nuances, so I have taken artistic liberty and freely interpreted the issues in the way I see fit for a Human AU. _

_Reviews are loved and keeps me writing!_


	2. Part 2

**PART TWO**

 _Loving you forever, can't be wrong_  
 _Even though you're not here, won't move on_  
 _And there's no remedy for memory_  
 _Your face is like a melody, it won't leave my head  
 **\- Dark Paradise, Lana Del Rey**  
_

* * *

"We've found DNA belonging to your daughter in several new locations… and we've connected it to a woman named Rose Quartz. She was last seen in Beach City, Delmarva, ten years ago. Her clothes and car had matching samples. She is now the prime suspect in the murder and disappearance of Pink, and she has been arrested in absentia." _  
_

Blue clutched the phone in her hand when the call ended. The police investigator's formally detached voice lingered in the room. She latched onto the piece of new information, like a fragment of driftwood on a storming sea, letting it keep her afloat. Barely above the surface.

Rose Quartz… Finally a name, someone responsible, someone to pay. Blue had seen enough similar cases to know that it was only a matter of time now. Rose was the one who stole Pink's life. What did that vile woman let Pink go through in her last moments? How dared she live on, after leaving Pink in the forest that day?

After so many years of nothing, nothing but clues leading nowhere, endless media speculation and the harrowing emptiness, this was a devastating sense of relief. She closed her eyes, feeling warm wetness running down her face. She wanted Rose to pay, she wanted her to be punished in the worst way possible, and it would never be enough. Blue had passed many death sentences in her field of work, but this was no time to ask any higher deity to have mercy upon the guilty one.

She had never felt more merciless. Strikingly relentless. She wanted to do worse.

 _Oh, Pink…_

 _What good will any of this do?_

She found herself walking up the stairs again, unable to stop herself. The door in the far end of the hallway on the third floor seemed so plain and unassuming, but once she unlocked it a world of color surrounded her. She breathed the still and dusty air, as her knees gave way and she sank to the floor.

She blinked slowly as she stared in front of her, tears running down her cheeks and neck. She tried to push herself up again, but all her strength had left her.

"They say it'll all be over soon," she mumbled. "I wonder what you would think…"

She closed her eyes.

That was how Yellow found her later. She stepped into the room, seeing Blue wipe her face with the hem of her dress, and sit up with an exposed expression.

She used to be so formidable, relentless. There was something majestic about how Blue moved, in long sweeping dresses or her black court robe. Her hair flowed like a veil around her when she wasn't in court, and Yellow found it so pleasant to part it and see her face bared, and those clear blue eyes. That was the woman who had captured Yellow's attention back in university: her regal aura, her calm yet authoritative voice to her peers, and her detachment to most things going around her. She had quickly assembled a group of loyal followers.

Blue on the other hand had been captivated with Yellow whenever she passed her by, the confident stride and high heels that made the crowd part of her. Already back then, Yellow wore her short hair like a crown, when she spoke everyone turned to listen attentively, and no one ever opposed her.

They had been together ever since then, startled by the first kiss they shared on a secluded balcony during a dinner party. Like two polar opposites, yet cut from the same cloth, they matched perfectly. Whitney had accepted Blue into the family without complaints, seeing how it would benefit the corporation. They had married two years after their respective graduations.

Yellow looked at her now, saw the deep permanent bags underneath her eyes, how sunken her posture had become, but it didn't matter – she was still her Blue.

Yellow supposed she herself had become worn as well. She had worked harder than ever these years, while Blue had mostly quit her duties in court. They could live comfortably for the rest of their lives if they wanted to, but Yellow would never let the corporation fall apart. Whitney had taken a step back from it and left most of the decision-making to her daughter. People were counting on Yellow's leadership, and with thousands of employees all over the world, retiring was never an option.

She crouched down in front of Blue, placing her hands on her arms.

"I thought we agreed, that we would not come here anymore. Let's focus on the trial and put all of this behind us."

Blue didn't answer, looking at Pink's bed and dresser, all the things she had once used and touched. A fine layer of dust covered everything, sullying the bright colors. The photos had been removed from the frames and the shattered remains of the mirror had been disposed off, but everything else remained like the night she disappeared.

Disappeared. That was the official verdict, as there were no suspects and no body. Presumed murdered on the same day.

Her room had been shut off from the rest of the house by Yellow, but now and then Blue returned to wallow in memories. They had had their first real fight in years when Yellow tried to get the room cleaned out, and now it had become a museum of their lost child.

A distasteful idea, Yellow thought. She had been the first one to erase every trace from their lives once the primary investigation shut down. For Blue's sake as well, had all the family photos of Pink's and all her other belongings been stuffed away. Only the photos of Yellow, Blue and Whitney remained in the house, depicting them in their university days, young and ambitious and ready to conquer the future.

As if their daughter was only a temporary, forever closed chapter in their history. Blue looked at the missing spot where the mirror used to be; the wallpaper was a shade lighter than the rest.

"Why can't you just let me _grieve_?" She turned away from the embrace.

Yellow straightened up, her tone hard. "It's been sixteen years, Blue! You can't keep coming here forever!"

"Why not?" Her voice sounded like it was about to break into a million sharp shards.

Yellow let her voice become softer. "How can you stand being here? There is no use in wallowing in all this regret. Of course we will still love her, and we're always thinking of her, but now there's nothing we can do!"

She felt weary and unstable the longer she remained in Blue's presence. She longed to emerge herself in work again; logical and rational work, but she couldn't leave Blue like this. She stepped closer to her and took her hands in her own, gently pulling her upright.

"Resume your position in the corporation. It will take your mind off things. We can work together like we used to."

She knew it was more of a plea than a request, but Blue didn't look at her. "I can't."

Yellow felt a wave of emotion that made her chest clench. She sharply turned away and leaned against Pink's bed frame, gritting her teeth to hold back the tears.

"Don't you know I miss her too?" she whispered, half-choked. Being here in this damned room was a screaming reminder of everything that she never wanted to remember.

Tears ran down Blue's face as she leaned against Yellow's back, hugging her from behind. They stood like that for a few minutes before Yellow straightened up, finally finding her composure again.

But Blue could only look back.

"Now there's nothing we can do…" she mumbled and withdrew. Like a ghost, she moved down the hallway with heavy steps. Her thick hair that once had been so magnificent was heavy against her back and unbrushed. She had worn the same dress for days, and her complexion looked ghostly pale.

All Yellow could do was to stay by her side.

They rarely crossed paths nowadays; Yellow mostly shut herself into her office with work when she was at home, while Blue remained in their bedroom, spent long hours at the grave, or in Pink's room. Yellow had usually left for work by the time Blue left her bedroom in the morning and Blue was asleep by the time she returned. Their maids took care of the house and prepared their meals. They could be strangers for weeks, even months, before they took time to reconcile.

The disturbance of the phone call today had shattered Blue's carefully laid out routine. She couldn't bring herself to stroll in the garden or even distract herself by preparing for court duty. There was nothing, but resentment and sadness, always blended.

That night she couldn't sleep, like so many others, seeing the light coming from Yellow's office. She moved numbly through the dark, empty house until she ended up in the master bathroom.

An area made of bright marble was dedicated to a shower, and she let her heavy night robe fall to the floor. She stripped out of her nightgown and let her hair fall down her back, before turning the shower on. The warm misty water filled her senses; she had always found the sound so comforting. She stepped into the wide space and leaned her back against the cold wall. Her body slowly heated up, but she still felt cold. Empty.

Memories came flooding, and she was unable to stop them.

.

She is two weeks overdue, and her entire body feels heavy, like some kind of underwater creature. Her back and breasts are constantly aching, and water is the only thing that gives her relief. When she steps under the stream, she can hear Yellow behind her and smiles tiredly. Yellow's short blonde hair flattens and surrounds her face in beautiful spikes when she joins her in the shower. Their moments together have been scarce lately.

"I wish she would just be here already," Blue mumbles, resting her hands on her belly.

Yellow strokes her hair from her face. "You know what the doctor said. She'll come out when she's ready."

"I can't wait to see her face." She leans against Yellow, and they stand together in the pouring warmth, with Blue's belly between them. It's like an island, close but still isolated. The baby is a moon, an asteroid, orbiting her, still shadowed but never too far away.

They feel the baby move underneath their joined hands – nighttime is her playtime. Yellow seems relaxed, the way she only is when they are alone, as she lets her hand run across Blue's tense skin.

"Soon enough," she says confidently and starts massaging her tense shoulders.

Feeling silly and tearful, Blue kisses her. The baby feels like an amphibian, having lived and moved inside of her for so long. A sudden nudge from within makes her lose her breath for a moment and she smiles, leaning her head against Yellow's steady chest.

.

The opening of a door brought her back, and she heard someone entering the bathroom.

"Yellow?" Her voice sounded weaker than she'd like.

"I'm here, Blue."

Blue stared at the wall, feeling tears mix with the running water. When Yellow stepped in behind her she finally turned her head. She was prepared for another lecture, but Yellow didn't say a word as she gently touched her shoulder. When was the last time they had been together like this?

Blue turned around in a movement that surprised them both, and pressed their bodies together as she cried without restraint.

The next day, she decided to visit the grave. She had slept close to Yellow all night, and those few hours of deep sleep had been oddly helpful. Yellow had declined to come, saying she was busy with work, but demanded that Blue let her handmaid Azul accompany her.

Blue crouched in front of the empty grave and let her veil fall back, no longer bothering to shield her face from view like she normally did in public.

Beautifully engraved letters in the polished marble stone, signing the date of birth and death. The letters shone in white, perfectly preserved after all these years. Enormous roses in pink adorned the stone, a tribute to her daughter's favorite color. They had grown around the edges and spread by the wind, and Blue knew that if Whitney bothered to visit the grave she would demand they all be cut off. Blue had carefully preserved every single one of the roses, tending to them with obsessive care, refusing to move a single thing.

If she let everything stay exactly as it was, maybe time would stop.

She picked up the little necklace from her pocket and cradled it in her hand. A tiny pink diamond on a chain. It had never been resized when Pink grew up; her neck remained so small, it was just the same as when she received it.

.

A pale sunrise has colored the sky and she gazes at it for a moment with weary eyes. Her daughter has finally fallen asleep in her arms. In her few hours of life she has already given several nurses a headache.

Now she sleeps soundly as Blue strokes her light hair. It feels like silk, and she smells so good. Yellow has not left their side for a moment, and Blue saw, through the haze of exhaustion, the look in her eyes when their child finally took her first breath. And cry she did – she let everyone know of her existence, the new Diamandis member.

Blue lets her index finger run along the baby's face. "Look, her cheeks are so pink!" Her skin is saturated in a strong peachy pink hue, and her face is glowing with the color. "It suits her, don't you think?"

"Pink." Yellow looks at the baby with a tired smile. "You were worth the wait."

Her very tiny fingers spread wide in her sleep. She's much smaller than all other babies Blue has seen, despite being born so late. Blue remembers the word the doctors had mentioned – _amniotic fluid_. There had been too much of it, and it had been a cause of concern for all of them, until now.

"She's perfect," Blue whispers, leaning back against the pillows in her bed, and her tears starts running again. It feels a bit silly, and she wipes them away. She's exhausted but she can't stop looking at her daughter. The connection she feels is so vividly intense. She has refused to let the nurses handle Pink more than absolutely necessary and Yellow has enforced that rule. Some of the country's most prominent doctors and nurses has been present during the birth.

Yellow leans over her and strokes her hair once. "Sleep, Blue," she says, her tone is soft but authoritative. "I will take care of her." She eases the baby from her grip and Blue feels the relaxation and weariness hit her. She can sleep knowing Pink is in safe hands.

Through the windows of her room, she can see Yellow walk back and forth in the hallway with Pink when she starts fussing. Yellow cradles her against her shoulder, mumbling – singing? – something to her. Pink is stubborn, but Yellow even more so, and her steps doesn't falter until Pink once again has fallen asleep.

Later that day a nurse announces that they have a visitor. Yellow is about to scold her, when a familiar voice drifts in.

"Let me see her." Whitney Diamandis' powerful, sing-song voice. She moves into the room like a hurricane, all dressed in white silk and fur as usual. Her high heels chatter against the linoleum floor. "Where is my grandchild?"

Yellow stands in front of the bed and her voice has that rare diplomatic tone she only has when speaking to her mother. "Blue's been in labour for twenty hours. We should let her rest." But Whitney walks right past her.

"This is Pink," Blue introduces her, having finished nursing. She is proud, but she still feels uneasy as Whitney inspects her baby. Pink yawns and blinks slowly.

Despite slight resistance from Blue and a disapproving look from Yellow, Whitney lifts the baby into the air like she's a bag of flour.

"Support the back of her head with your hand," Yellow instructs, her voice is restrained. No one else would have the nerve to approach them like this.

"Hello there, Starlight," Whitney cooes intensely. Pink protests with a cry that makes both Blue and Yellow tense.

"Welcome to the family," the older woman smiles, paying no mind to Pink's protests. "My, my, you're much smaller than I expected."

She returns her granddaughter to Blue as if she suddenly has lost interest in her, then places her palms together in a big gesture and chuckles to herself. The terrified nurse quickly leaves the room. Whitney opens her bejeweled bag and presents the necklace. Blue and Yellow has seen it before; it's been ready months in advance. It matches the small necklaces both Yellow and Blue wears.

It's not a gift given by affection; it's a token of their status. Of Pink's status, and the life that awaits her now.

"The heiress is finally born! Ah, do I have plans for her!"

.

.

Finally, it would all be over soon.

Blue's grief and her own, everything that had gone wrong since that day. The incident could have been the downfall of the corporation, of everything their family had built for generations, of the empire. The trial and execution of the guilty would be the end.

Sometimes Yellow could still feel it, a stirring inside of her, the resounding emptiness, and Pink's bright laughter. It never really faded from her memory; when she was at her most vulnerable it hit her. Her eyes stung from the sleepless night and she tried to focus on the screen in front of her, but it all lingered around her. Blue's breakdown. Her trying to stay composed, for her sake, for the corporation. The night they had spent intertwined in the bed, clinging to each other as if they would drown if they lost body contact for even a moment.

A headache was starting to spread along her temples and she could see herself like through a looking glass, hear her own voice telling a young Pink to leave her alone.

"Why? I wanna be here with you!" The small Pink from her memory spread her arms wide, balancing on her desk. She turned to look at Yellow, and her voice had an eerie tone, as if her voice was cracking open.

"No!" Both Yellow's memory and her present self protested.

"I'm just having fun…" Memory Pink ripped her diamond necklace from herself and threw it away, and Yellow found herself shouting and reaching for it, but no words came over her lips.

Pink's eyes were cold and hard and she smiled in a way that was unlike her, too wide, showing teeth. Her lips were dark and her lashes too heavy, her fluffy hair stiffened.

"Come look for me Yellow! I'm over here!" and she was crawling out behind her desk, too bright, too eerie. Yellow felt a cold sweat breaking out and struggled to remain calm.

Her hands were shaking. She had spent all day locked into her office, after only getting a few hours of sleep, and all the caffeine in her system made her heart beat painfully hard.

"This is what you made me do," the hallucinatory Pink accused childishly, and her voice changed, "There you are!"

Yellow flinched violently. Whitney Diamandis had come into her office, without knocking as always, and was now standing behind her. She felt a thin hand with long, claw-like nails on her shoulder.

"Oh Yellow… Yelena…" Whitney said with her bright, cheerful voice. It almost sounded pitying, but impersonal, as if she was commenting the results of a football game. "A little bird told me the guilty one has been identified and is awaiting trial."

Yellow gritted her teeth.

Whitney moved closer, her long silk cape flowed behind her. "I have already made arrangements with my lawyers." She almost sounded amused by the turn of events. "My, my, what a hassle. I expect you and Blue to handle it. I'm leaving for Mallorca tomorrow morning."

Yellow looked stiffly at the screen, refusing to meet her mother's gaze.

"Now, now, Yelena, don't you have work to do?" Whitney reprimanded. "We can't let this little… distraction hurt the business any longer."

Yellow stood up, but Whitney shook her finger in a scolding fashion. "I'm talking to you, Yelena."

"I have an urgent call to make," Yellow lied through clenched teeth and left the room.

.

.

.

Pearl saw so much of _her_ in Steven. It was getting more prominent every day; his excitement, his curiosity and the way he made everyone his friends. He was unapologetically himself, the way _she_ had been, once she found the version of herself she wanted to be. It was a bittersweet reminder. Steven was like a son to her, just like he was to the others. If only they knew… what they had been fighting for, fighting with, all these years.

Tomorrow was his tenth birthday and she tried to focus on that. When she kept her mind on logical, organizational tasks like cleaning, sorting things in alphabetical order, and teaching complex mathematical equations and how to organize strikes to Connie, she was in control. For once in her life.

Amy never was in control of anything, a trait that drove Pearl insane a couple of times a week, but she couldn't picture a life without her and Garnet. They had been living together for so many years, raising Steven together, and they were a family, for better or worse. Amy had been found in a basket outside a kindergarten when she was an infant, and Garnet had fled from a war-torn country in her youth. They had created a new, happy life together.

But out of all things Pearl disliked, she especially disliked Amy's… influence on Steven.

As an early birthday present, Amy had taken him to see a wrestling match, which was a hobby of hers. Now the boy was completely enthralled with what he had seen. Amy had practiced with Garnet on the beach, but Pearl would not let him engage in such… sports.

"Please! I wanna join them and wrestle too!"

"You're too young, Steven. Why don't we solve a puzzle instead?"

He shook his head. "I need to get strong like them!" His eyes were sparkling with excitement and he had tied a mis-matched sweatband around his forehead to match his new look.

"Steven…" Pearl picked up his shirts from the floor and folded them into a neat stack as she spoke. "I know you look up to them, but there are different ways of being strong. Garnet and Amy – when they're together, sometimes they get out of control. They can get so overzealous! Remember the beach umbrella Greg gave us? Broken right off!"

She looked away and frowned. "Strength isn't just about who wins an arm-wrestling competition."

"Come on, Pearl! Don't you wanna try too? Lars and Sadie are coming over to try out the new gym! We're gonna get beefy!"

She sighed and crouched down so she was at the same height as him. "I'm telling you this for your own good. Being strong in the real way is not when you tackle someone to the floor, it's... when you can stand up to someone who's more powerful than you, someone who you're afraid of. True strength is when you dare to do what is right for you, even if it's not what the world expects."

"But Amy never loses a match, she stands up to anyone! And Garnet is the strongest person I know!"

Pearl straightened up again, putting his folded shirts away in their proper place. "All power comes at a big expense."

"It won't be expensive! Dad helped me build the gym!" He smiled, all caught up in his plans as he ran out the door to great his friends – an anticipating Sadie dragging Lars with her. Steven smiled bright, holding up a megaphone.

For a moment Pearl could picture Rose, standing in front of a sea of protesters, the police approaching, her fearless stance as she called for justice.

Steven yelled into the megaphone. "Let's get strong in the real way!"

He was his mother's son indeed.

* * *

 **To be continued.**

 **A/N: Thank you all for your support! I love to hear your thoughts so keep it coming!**


	3. Part 3

**PART THREE**

 _She can't remember a time when she felt needed  
If love was red then she was color-blind  
All her friends, they've been tried for treason  
And crimes that were never defined  
 **\- To The Moon and Back, Savage Garden**  
_

* * *

There was a knock on the door. Then another one, quick and steady.

"I'm coming!" Steven ran over and flung the thin door open. "Welcome to my - "

He stopped, seeing two women stand in front of him. Steven thought he knew everyone in Beach City, from the mailman to the mayor, but they were a couple of complete strangers walking in on his birthday party.

"Um, hey," he said, confused but soon smiling again. "Do you wanna come in and have some cake? It's really good."

The short woman standing closest to him looked him up and down. She wore a dark blue uniform and had a prominent scar on the right sight of her face, underneath her eye. Her muscular companion standing behind her was almost twice as tall her, looking completely dead-pan.

The shorter of the two held up a badge in Steven's face. "I'm agent Aquata Marine from the FBI."

"FBI?" Steven was truly confused now, trying to figure out what it stood for. Something in his mind connected it to the new Crying Breakfast Friends spinoff - was it Friendly Breakfast Inmates?

Pearl and Garnet stepped forward in the next moment, and Amy lifted her head from the bag of Chaps she was devouring. Lapis and Peri looked up from the couch where they sat close together, their expressions frozen.

"What is this about?" Garnet said, her voice stiff.

Aquata Marine smiled coldly and stepped into the house, ignoring Steven. Behind her, her colleague filled the entire door post, effectively blocking the way out. "We know Rose Quartz lives at this residence. Where is she?"

Pearl dropped the cake she was carrying and her face paled. Cream and strawberries spread on the floor and Steven looked at her with wide eyes.

"Rose Quartz is not here," Garnet said firmly.

Agent Marine's narrowed eyes drifted to Pearl for a moment. "Rose Quartz is under arrest for the murder of Pink Diamandis. Protecting her whereabouts makes you her accomplices and you will be charged alongside her," she declared, almost smugly.

"What's going on?" Steven looked at Garnet. "Who's Pink Diamandis?!"

"We have a search warrant giving us the rights to search through the premises," Marine continued. "Get moving, Topaz, so we can get this over with."

Amy looked suspiciously at her. "Hey dude, we're in the middle of a party! You guys are not invited!"

"Yeah, you can't do that!" Peri chimed in, lifting her head from Lapis' lap.

Agent Marine waved around the warrant briefly before she inspected the room. Garnet gave Steven a quick look, then turned to the agent. Her voice was composed and her face blank, but Steven could tell there was something right underneath her calm exterior.

"Rose Quartz died ten years ago. She is not here."

Agent Marine looked completely unfazed by this information. "I don't believe that until I see the certificate. Nevertheless, this house is to be searched for traces of DNA." She muttered to herself: "If she hadn't disappeared from the face of the Earth in the first place, we wouldn't even be here doing such menial tasks."

"Hey, I'm talking to you! Who said you could just walk in here?" Peri stepped forward.

Garnet held up her hand, causing her to halt. "Actually, they can do this," she said. Her tone was strangely empty, but final. "Don't do anything reckless."

More agents entered behind Topaz, and Garnet pulled Steven to the side. They watched as the investigators slipped on plastic gloves and carried their equipment into the small house, moving the floating balloons to the side. Pearl stood in the background, ghostly pale and slightly trembling. Amy stood by her side, glaring at the intruders. Lapis' stance was tense, following the investigators' every move with a hostile expression.

Steven looked between them, worried by the thick tension, seeing Topaz methodically and systematically look through his drawers and holding his precious Ranger Guy figurine in her hand. "Not Ranger Guy! You can have Dave Guy instead!"

Garnet's voice was stiffer than Steven had ever heard it when she spoke. "Who signed the search warrant?"

Agent Marine smiled as she emptied Amy's bag of chips onto the table.

"Judge Blue Diamandis did."

They ended up sitting in the living room, in the corner that had already been searched through, watching the investigators comb through every inch of the house. The open floor plan gave them sight over everything that was going on, and Amy got defensive when the fridge was searched through and several rotten burritos were uncovered in a hidden place that survived Pearl's cleaning raids. Steven sat on the floor next to Amy and Garnet while Lapis stood in the background with clenched fists.

"It's not right," Lapis mumbled, her eyes dark and stormy. "If this is about the murder of Pink Diamandis, then that judge can't sign the warrant. It's conflict of interest. They're never playing fair."

Garnet tensed up at her words, but said nothing.

"Conflict of what?" Amy frowned, then looked at Steven who was equally clueless. They watched Topaz swab several surfaces and objects and some things were put in plastic bags.

Eventually, Aquata Marine straightened up in her very short height and dusted off herself, giving them a patronizing look. "We have enough physical evidence. You." She looked at Pearl who had sunk down in a chair without word. "We need to bring you in for questioning."

"What?" Amy and Steven looked up. Garnet stepped forward, but agent Topaz was there, blocking her way with a stern expression. Pearl looked between Garnet and Steven, panic visible in her bright blue eyes.

"Is she arrested?" Garnet asked loud, her composure cracking. Amy got to her feet and Lapis and Peri came closer, their stances defensive.

"She is being detained." Aquata Marine flicked a piece of Chaps from her uniform. "If she won't comply, I will have to arrest her. I'm in no way required to tell you this but… " Her facial expression told them she couldn't resist. "Her DNA matches the one found at the crime scene. Topaz, escort her out."

The large, muscular woman moved over without a word, standing imposingly next to Pearl, ready to grab her thin body should she resist. The rest of the investigators had already packed up and were on their way out - it was clear that agent Marine was the boss.

"Pearl!" Steven called, running over to her. "Why do they wanna take you away?"

"It's alright, Steven," she tried shakily, but he saw the unconcealed fear and apprehension in her eyes. "I'll be back soon."

"Don't go, Pearl!" His voice was desperate, and her eyes filled with tears. She looked away, trying to contain her shaking. Garnet walked over and gently pulled him away from the imposing agent.

"I'm sorry," Pearl whispered as Topaz started leading her out the door.

They were frozen, seeing agent Marine turn and walk out the door. "My, my, what an ordeal. Still no Rose Quartz. I'm ready for coffee."

As soon as the door closed behind them, Steven ran over and looked through the window, seeing Pearl being escorted into a police car down on the beach. "What's going on?" he shouted. "Garnet, why did they take Pearl?"

Garnet turned away, her hand covering her face. She was falling apart and she tried to hide it, to spare Steven, but Amy was shouting and not doing anything to hide her anger.

"We always used to fight the system!" she yelled. "We need to get Pearl back!"

"We can't." Garnet was frozen. "This time, we can't fight it. We can't fight _them_. For Steven's sake."

"They can't just accuse her of something she didn't do! We need to tell them it's all a mistake!"

"Who's Blue Diamandis?" Steven demanded, looking between them. Lapis face was tight and hostile, looking at the door.

"Yeah, who is she?" Amy chimed in.

Garnet felt the surge in her stomach, the fear crashing down. "I... I can't go near her. That woman has done terrible things." She whispered to herself more than anyone else, her insides twisted in agony. "Pearl won't escape a life sentence for this."

"A life sentence?" Steven was shouting now, tears in his eyes, and she hated to see him so upset. She was supposed to protect him from this. "Garnet, why?"

Garnet was trembling, holding her arms around herself. She forced herself to look at Steven, to tell him the part of their history he had been sheltered from.

"After the protests and the great Diamandis Corporation strike fourteen years ago, so many of our friends disappeared. They got double life sentences for organizing the resistance groups... they will never get out again in this life. Their lawyers had been bought by the corporation. Blue Diamandis was the judge, protecting her company.

Some of our friends went into hiding and fled, knowing what sentences awaited them for protesting and trying to bring the corporation down. We never heard of them again, and we were all bankrupt after the expenses from the trials. Our friends who fled... they can never show their faces again, never even seek medical help. Some... were broken by the cruel treatment they received in prison. It was a very difficult time for all of us."

"What's that to do with Pearl?" Amy shouted, looking like a lost child. She had already lost her only mother figure.

"They will find a way to build a case against Pearl, for being Rose's closest companion. Blue Diamandis knows every judge in this country and they will all do her this favor. And... Yellow Diamandis... She will do what she always does with her enemies. She will get us evicted and find a way to sue us for everything we own."

"But Rose couldn't have killed that Pink whats-her-name! Rose literally couldn't hurt a fly!" Amy protested.

"Who's Pink Diamandis?" Steven demanded again, louder.

"Yeah, who that?" Peri chimed in in her usual nasal tone.

Garnet looked up, tried to compose her voice enough to speak. She looked only at Steven.

"She was the heiress to the Diamandis Corporation, a company built on the backs of people crawling in the ground, and the exploitation of human lives. Born into wealth and privilege. It had went on for decades before she was born, but she was the one who was going to take over after her parents. And she was just like them."

Garnet closed her eyes, reminiscing what Rose had told her so long ago and the rumors that circulated in the resistance groups. With a sting of pain she remembered her close friend, Bisma, one of those who disappeared after the trials and never returned. Bisma's words, filled with rage: _all wealth and power steams from a crime. To get to the top, you have to step on everyone else. That's what they did._

"Pink Diamandis had barely come of age when she disappeared. It was assumed that she was murdered by the family's political enemies. Rose... she told me that she had been involved in a protest group that were focusing on Pink."

It was completely quiet in the room. Lapis looked unfazed, almost content with the story she heard, while Peridot shrugged and Amy grimaced. "We were all involved in those protest groups, so..."

Steven's voice was flat. "Did Mom... kill Pink Diamandis?"

Garnet turned away. "I don't know, Steven. I can't tell you... I wish I had an answer. But what happened to Pink Diamandis changed everything. The corporation lost so much influence, and Rose could organize a strike for the workers. Their working conditions improved. So many people were liberated when she disappeared. She would have been a tyrant."

"Mom wouldn't do such a thing." Steven shook his head, thinking of all the stories he had heard, then looked at the enormous painting of his mother. It had been moved to the floor when the police was searching through the house, they had lifted the glass and it had shattered in one end.

"Steven," Garnet said softly, crouching down in front of him and looking him deep into his eyes, with her different colored-ones. Dark red and blue. "You know why we had to fight. To make this world a better place, and give a voice to those who couldn't raise their own. To protect those who had no power and give them back their basic human rights. To protect the Earth from being exploited and rainforests from being decimated by senseless greed. We showed them that democracy is the way, and here in Delmarva we won the fight.

We swore to never kill anyone, and only fight in self-defense. But... if Pink Diamandis tried to have your mother and her companions killed... she would have acted in self-defense to protect her friends."

The weight of her words lingered in the room. He blinked once, twice, and Garnet felt crushing guilt for having him witness this, wishing once again that Rose could be here and give them her reassuring.

"I'm sorry, Steven."

"But... Pearl... she can't go to jail! She didn't do it!"

He backed away, his face pale, then ran towards the door, looking at the empty beach.

"Steven," Lapis called, worry softening her harsh expression. "Wait!"

He ran out the door and slammed it shut behind him.

.

Garnet remained crouched, feeling tears run down her face. She needed to find a way to solve this, to lead them all to the right decision and save Pearl. But there was something evading her, something she couldn't understand, and never had.

She remembered visiting Pearl in the hospital after one particular violent protest, fourteen years ago.

The sight of her friend was hurtful, a reminder of the threat they all lived under, and it was not the first time. Pearl had smiled, as if she was proud of her condition. Her head was bandaged after the blow to her skull.

"Pearl," Garnet had said as she stepped into the room and sat down by the side of the bed. She took her friend's hands in her own and looked gravely at her. "I know you take pride in protecting Rose and being there for your friends, but this is beyond common sense!" Pearl didn't seem to listen.

"You can't risk your life for the smallest thing! Rose was never in danger, yet you threw yourself at that policeman – you could have died! For what, Pearl?" Pearl had looked a bit guilty but Garnet wasn't letting it go.

They had been front figures during the Diamandis Corporation strike, and Rose had led the protesters and refused to back down, even when the police arrived with shields and tear gas. Pearl had never left Rose's side, acting like her human shield. Garnet would risk her life for her friends as well, but she knew the difference between courage and stupidity, and Pearl was only taking unnecessary risks. Aggravating the police and engaging in combat without backup was never bound to end well.

"We've already lost friends to them," Garnet had said intensely. "Your life is more important than the strike. Rose knows it too. There are other things we can do and we need to be there and live through it. Don't put your life on the line like that!"

Something had changed in Pearl's face. Her expression had made Garnet fall silent, when Pearl turned her injured head to the side. She had gotten a harsh blow when she threw herself in front of Rose, causing her to collapse.

She glanced at the vase of flowers on the bedside table, a gift from her beloved.

"If Rose was ever taken to the hospital," she had said quietly, "then everything would be over. Our lives today, everything we know and fight for, it would all end. No matter what happens I can't... let her be harmed."

She had then pressed her thin lips together as if she had said too much, and looked away. She wouldn't say another word about the matter, and Garnet had decided not to push her. Not that time and not the many times after that. Still, she couldn't forget Pearl's words.

Now she was sitting there in the mess of what had been a birthday party and watched it all happen in front of her. Ever since Rose's death she had taken the leader role among them, and everyone looked to her for guidance, most of all Pearl. But Pearl and Rose shared something Garnet had never understood.

Garnet had always been whole in herself, never needing another person to complete her. She had always had a very strong sense of foreboding, and few things took her by surprise. But now, she had no idea of what was to come, and no idea what to do.

.

Pearl sat in the empty interrogation room, waiting for the police officer to return and allow her to go home. They had already held her for five hours, and she counted the minutes.

Endless questioning about Rose, and Pink, and all the things she could not say. Instead she told them a vague story about Rose's ideals, how she was involved in different resistance groups – all the truths she was proud to tell, things that had all been in the newspapers. Rose's bravery and her determination. She hoped she could make them believe that she was just a tearful and confused follower. But she knew they had connected her to Pink, and the fear almost made her lose her composure several times.

 _Steven... I wish I could tell you.  
_

The room was scarcely decorated, containing only the hard chair she was sitting on, a metal table and a chair on the opposite end. A camera in the corner watched her every movement, and the light in the ceiling was cold and harsh. The thick metal door was locked from the outside.

She thought of Rose, like always, pictured her face. If Pink was here together with her, she would have cracked a joke and commented on the police officers. Rose would have been focused on the next step, how to get out, not hesitating to slam a chair against the door and camera if needed.

Pearl simply sat in her chair, hands folded properly in her lap. Her weary mind drifted.

.

.

Pearl stands stiffly in the grass. Her foster mother has just dropped her off at the park, after telling her that she'll be back in a few hours when she has run her errands. Sometimes she doesn't return until late evening, leaving Pearl to herself.

She looks down at her shoes, then glances at the other children playing on the swings. She knows she must not get her clothes dirty, or she'll be punished later. Her dress is bought from second-hand and patched together in several places, with different colors, and her shoes are too small. She remains standing, awkwardly, like a doll. She doesn't dare to try out the swings, knowing the other children will mock her. She's been taught to stand straight, her hands clasped in front of her. Never to raise her voice or talk back. She doesn't want to be replaced again.

There is a small coffee shop right by the park. She is still hungry, so she looks away from it.

A sudden, loud voice captures her attention. Outside the coffee shop there are two women and a girl, who scrunches up her face and stomps her feet.

"I want ice-cream _now_!"

Pearl can't help but look. The girl seems to be in her own age, six or seven, and she is wearing a pink, shimmering tutu. Her hair is thick and fluffy, like cotton candy.

The woman who wears a blue dress sighs. "One moment, dear." The other one, who has a yellow cape and high heels, leans over the counter of the shop. "I want to speak to the manager."

The girl looks bored, as she clings to her mom's dress and looks at the park. Her wide eyes meet Pearl's for a second, and Pearl quickly looks away, blushing. She wishes she could just disappear into the ground, but the girl is already on her way towards her. She skips over the grass quickly, then stops in front of Pearl and smiles wide.

"Hi! I'm Pink! Do you wanna be my friend?"

Pearl is stunned. She nods shyly and doesn't know what to say, but she feels warm inside. She's never had a friend before.

Pink grins at her. "Yay!"

They go to the swings, Pink leading the way with confident steps and Pearl shyly following behind. Pearl has never really played anything before, and she happily lets the other girl dictate their games. Pink shows her how to play tag and hide-and-seek, and Pearl forgets to worry about her dress getting filthy. Pink rolls around in the grass without a care and laughs loudly, and Pearl can't stop looking at her. Her friend.

Pink is full of ideas and energy, and Pearl feels less shy when she takes her hand and pulls her away from the swings. The other girl doesn't care that the others grimace at them. Pearl feels happy about it, she wants no one else to join their games.

They run through the park, in among the tall trees. Pink slips and they fall into the grass, giggling.

"Look!" Pink picks a flower from the ground. Pearl looks, tries to mimic her fascination. It's small and magenta-colored with delicate petals. Pink cradles it gently in her hands.

She looks at Pearl for a moment, and Pearl shies away from her gaze. Pink tilts her head to the side, then reaches out and places the flower in Pearl's hair.

She feels so warm and soft inside, and she smiles back, feeling her face heating up.

Pink flips onto her back and looks at the sky. Pearl carefully lies down next to her.

"Where's your moms?" Pink asks as she lets her index finger point in the air, following the contours of the clouds.

Pearl turns her head and looks at her with wide eyes for a moment. "I don't have any," she mumbles.

"You can borrow one of mine," Pink shrugs. "That looks like a big fluffy lion!" She points at a cloud and pouts. "I want a pet lion, but Mom just takes me to the zoo. It's not the same thing!"

Pearl wants to say something similar – she wants to agree with everything Pink says, but she can't think of what she wants. Once again she looks in awe at the other girl, amazed by everything she says.

Suddenly a shadow falls over them.

"Pink!" someone exclaims.

They look up, and the woman with the blue dress stands in front of them, her hands in her sides. "You had us really worried!"

Behind her, Pearl sees the even taller woman with the heels. Her arms are crossed in front of her chest and she looks sternly at them as they sit up. "What were you thinking, going away on your own like that, Pink?"

Pearl feels uneasy under their gazes and guiltily looks down.

"I found a friend, Mom!" Pink looks up at them, still excited.

"It's time to go now," the woman with the heels says. There is a sharp frown between her thin eyebrows.

"But Pearl and I were gonna build a sand colony! I wanna stay!"

Pearl feels Pink's moms look at her, looking at her patched up dress and worn out shoes, not at all like Pink's shimmering, brand-new clothes. She feels even more tense as they exchange a look, and she doesn't dare to look up.

"Pink," the woman with the blue dress says softly, "You know we can't leave you here alone. You could get lost - "

"Or get bitten by a dog or taken away by someone who has puppies at home, I _know,_ " Pink finishes, rolling her eyes. She raises her voice. "I'm not going home! I'm gonna play with Pearl!"

The woman with the heels sigh. "Very well. Pearl can come over and play with you at home."

"Yay!" Pink jumps up and down and grabs Pearl's hand. They follow Pink's moms back to the street, and the one with heels gives Pearl one look. "I'll call your guardian from the car and let her know you're coming home with us."

"You can stay for as long as you like," the woman with the dress adds when she sees Pink's expression.

"Can we have some ice-cream?" Pink asks as they follow them. "Pretty _please_ , mom?"

The one in blue nods. "You two can go pick what you want."

"Just make it quick," the other one adds.

They run towards the coffee shop while Pink tells a funny story about a stranger who said he had his whole house filled with candy, but when Pink tried to go with him, one of her mothers had punched him into the ground.

It's the first time Pearl ever tastes ice-cream, and she is momentarily distracted by the foreign sensation on her tongue, but then she is caught up looking at Pink again.

.

Pearl closed her eyes, smiling as she remembered the years following that, how Pink brought her to her favorite ice cream shop every year on her birthday. Together they had tried out every single flavor and topping.

The vivid colors of the memory faded quickly and she was back in the cold, sterile room.

She was worried for Steven, remembering his desperation, and her heart clenched. She wanted nothing but to be back by his side and assure him that she was fine. Her own feelings didn't matter; it was all about him now.

She never worried about herself. She knew the reality, that she would go to court, in front of the Diamandis family, and that she could end up in prison for the rest of her life once they decided to blame Pink's disappearance on her. As long as _that_ thing was missing, Pearl could never prove them wrong. It was the most probable outcome and she didn't need Garnet to confirm it for her. All she wished for was that Steven wouldn't have to be in the room when it happened. She hoped none of them would be there.

Garnet, Amy, Steven... her family. The newcomers into their group, Peri and Lapis Lazuli and friends she lost... most of all Bisma. And Greg _,_ although she had been so against him at first, she no longer could deny his importance in their lives, because he was so important to Steven. But nothing was the same without Rose.

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED.**

 **I love you all for your support! Let me know what you think!**


	4. Part 4

**PART FOUR** _  
_  
 _I'm young and I love to be young_  
 _I'm free and I love to be free_  
 _To live my life the way I want_ _  
To say and do whatever I please  
 **\- You Don't Own Me, Grace**  
_

* * *

 **Sixteen Years Earlier**

They stood side by side, watching the shimmering lights from the balcony.

Empire City.

"Quite a view, huh?" Rose closed her eyes and let her head fall back, towards the sky. There were no stars to see, hidden behind the smog and replaced by the millions of small lights from the skyscrapers and endless stream of cars on the ground. A glowing inferno of orange, red and blue.

Pearl wondered if she missed the stars. At her home the sky was always clear.

A breeze ruffled Rose's hair. She had hurriedly dyed and curled it in a bathroom stall on the way here, and her contact lenses had become second nature to her. On the muted TV screen in their hotel room her old face was shown – Pink was officially a missing person now. Pearl tried not to think about what would happen if her family were to find them.

"Do you miss them?"

The words seemed to hang in the air for a moment; they both knew who she was talking about. Those who, without a doubt, where overwhelmed with grief and fury.

Rose turned against her, smiled a little, but there was something grave in her eyes. It seemed like she had aged during the long trip and the days they had been away. Something was different about her, as if she was suddenly realizing the full extent of what they had done. She didn't roll her eyes or laugh it off this time; she actually held Pearl's gaze.

"I love them. But I love you and this world too. I have so much to see."

Pearl decided to leave it at that. If Rose was content, then so was she. Their lives could finally begin. They both lacked a past and owned nothing but Rose's bag of inherited money, but all was well.

"Pearl," Rose said softly and leaned closer. Pearl instinctively mirrored the movement, as Rose's dark eyes focused only on her. She closed the distance between them, the most natural thing in the world, and their lips met.

Softly. Lightly. Rose's scent made her head spin. She felt the other woman place her hands on her shoulders to steady her, and she looked completely mesmerized at Pearl.

Pearl had been waiting, dreaming for that moment for so long and it had been better than she ever could have imagined. Rose let her hands gently glide down to Pearl's hips, and slowly twirled her around. Pearl's face heated up, and she pressed herself against the taller woman.

Then, the moment drifted away.

"I'm going to sing together with Mr. Universe tomorrow," Rose said. "Do you wanna come?"

Pearl felt oddly stiff. "I'm not sure if this is a good idea. It's so soon..."

"It's just in his garage. Garnet and Amy are coming too. It'll be just the five of us!" She looked so excited, all traces of graveness erased.

"Can we trust him?" Pearl asked, still wary.

"Oh, Greg's fine! He has no idea," Rose laughed, but it sounded odd. "He's so _funny_!"

For the first time in her life Pearl had a strange feeling. Pink had had many brief, unrequited crushes in her teenage years and Pearl knew all about them. But this… A growing, nagging discomfort in her chest. This felt different.

Rose leaned against the balcony railing with a dreamy expression, feeling the warm night breeze.

"I want to move somewhere near the sea. Wouldn't it be nice to live on a beach? Oh, we could build a big house!"

Pearl smiled, letting the doubts fade away. "It would be wonderful."

.

The dreams of the sea and the beach house remained, but for a long time they were just dreams.

Rose soon found herself involved in the protests and organizing the strike against the Diamandis Corporation. As usual when she had decided what she wanted to do, she wouldn't back down until it was finished and victory was theirs. Victory or imprisonment for life, whatever happened first.

The following years she spent her time leading the resistance group and getting to know Greg Universe, feeling her fascination for the singer grow. She recruited new comrades, and out of all her friends, Bisma turned out to be one of the strongest, bravest. Her unwavering loyalty and talent helped them stand their ground against the police many times, but when her ideals changed, so did Rose.

For years Rose carried the secret of Bisma, another life on her conscience. Not until the strike and trials were over, and most of their friends had disappeared from their lives, forced into hiding or prison, she allowed herself to think about it.

It had been almost three years since she stood on that balcony with Pearl. Three forceful, violent years where she had fought, made and lost friends, and found herself.

They had finally settled down in Beach City, in a wrecked ruin of a house separated from the rest of the town that they bought for cheap. The location was perfect for all of them, who longed to see the open space instead of crowds, detaining cells and closed hospital doors. They could renovate it together, sometime in the future. The house was genuinely inviting with its faded shell white paint job and the view of the entire open sea. In the back of it, in the enormous rock on which it rested, there were several large empty rooms, reminding them of an ancient temple.

She, Garnet, Pearl and Amy would live peacefully for the rest of their days, or at least until something else came along. Greg was still trying to follow his musical dreams and was often out of town with his manager.

The first night the four of them sat on the beach, seeing the sea of stars above reflected in the water, feeling the stillness. Faint bass lines resounded in the air. On the other side of the small town the teenagers were out raving, something Rose and Greg had tried with excitement, but she'd rather be here.

She didn't want to be anywhere but here.

Pearl was smiling at her, Garnet was stargazing and Amy watching some strange creature crawl across the sand. There was a calm in the air after those terrible but victorious years. The four of them were together, they had protected and stood up for each other every day.

But there was also emptiness. And even Rose allowed herself to think back.

.

Bisma's face is distorted with emotion, in the dim light of Rose's current hideout. They are alone, or so it seems.

"We have to end it, Rose! Don't you see? We have to put an end to this where it started – and get rid of that entire corrupted family once and for all!"

"No." Her expression is final.

"They want to see us in maximum security for the rest of our lives, or in the chair! They will make it happen, Rose! With their corrupted lawyers and biased juries. Let's target their main office, and burn it to the ground! This is a war and we need to take it to _them_ , their fancy little palace! A real _revolution_!"

"We can't hurt the Diamandis family," Rose says firmly. "We can only take away their power."

Bisma glares at her and steps closer, her fists clenched. "Are all your ideals fake, Rose? You can't go through with what you promised – to rid this country of that massive corruption no matter what? You're going to back out on us now? Think about your friends, they're putting everything on the line for this!"

"It's _not_ right! Killing them won't solve anything."

"But that's what they do! We owe this to everyone who's been imprisoned! Remember Nerita?" Angry tears fill Bisma's eyes, and Rose wants to weep at the thought.

"What kind of leader wants to protect the opposition?" She steps closer, lunging for Rose, but she quickly steps aside. "Then I'll just have to do it without you!"

Rose turns away, as three masked women enter the room. They grab Bisma tightly, restraining her from behind.

Bisma's face falls in understanding as the intruders starts dragging her out of the room. She has stopped resisting, despite being strong enough to take them on. Her voice is calm now, but it cuts right through Rose.

"So – this is just a _game_ to you?"

Tears fill Rose's eyes as she turns away from her former ally. "I'm sorry," she whispers. "You'll be alright soon."

One of the masked intruders presses a soaked cloth against Bisma's mouth. Their orders are to drug her and drop her off somewhere out of the state. Once she wakes up, she will realize that she has been excommunicated.

Rose isn't worried about her seeking revenge. After this, seeing the raw deep hurt and betrayal in the other woman's eyes as her consciousness fades away, she knows it is the last time she will ever see her.

Rose presses her hand against her mouth in an attempt to stop the violent tears, once her friend has been dragged out and she is alone in the room. She is grateful that Pearl and Garnet weren't here to witness this.

It all comes back, like a maelstrom in her head. She is on her knees, trying to compose herself, but there is a blinding white image in her head, and her tears flow unrestrained over her hand. There is a bright voice in her memory, like cold hard steel clothed in velvet. Someone she can't reason with, someone who awakens her deepest need to fight back, someone not even her own mothers can fully protect her from.

" _Did you enjoy your little game, Pink?"_

 _._

 **Back to Present Time**

.

Yellow Diamandis was not a sentimental person – everything she had done in her life so far was the testament of that. While Blue moped at the grave or obsessed about the murder weapon and had run an investigation hotline for years, Yellow tried to focus on the way forward and out.

In her attempt to get away from her mother's visit yesterday she had locked herself into her second office, but immediately regretted her choice. This room was another reminder, and no matter how Yellow would fight every trace of _her_ if she could, it lingered in the walls and floors.

She had just been informed that someone had been brought in for questioning, but she didn't care to find out whom – it was not Rose Quartz. Not until the court's final decision was presented she would care. She decided not to let Blue find out, knowing what it would do to her.

No, Yellow didn't spend any more time mourning. She had found out the address in Delmarva where Rose Quartz, or her wretched henchmen supposedly now resided. There was a certain feeling of victory deep inside, the same she got when she made successful business deals or enormous stock market profits. It steamed from action, not useless feelings.

She had already been on the phone with her lawyer who had made all the practical arrangements and contacted the state governor. Now the contract lay in front of her on her desk.

Beach City, Delmarva, USA.

For being such a useless little town in an otherwise profitable land area, the price was good. It was a great place for expansion in the future: enormous luxurious resorts drawing ten times as many tourists every summer. The current residences would have to be moved, of course. The largest hotel would be located by the rock and the lighthouse closest to the sea.

But that didn't matter now. There was a little speck on the map that needed to be completely erased.

Yellow focused on that thought as she signed the contract.

Then she leaned back in her chair and allowed for just a little piece of memory.

.

"Mom!" Pink climbs up her desk and curiously peers at her.

Yellow leans slightly to the side, focusing on her phone call. "There will be more no excuses. Get it done. And don't expect me to look kindly upon this transgression. Yes, I know there is a village in the forest. It's an _invasion_. Commence the building at once."

"Mom! What are you talking about?"

"No… No. I will not repeat myself. That is simply unacceptable." She glares at Pink to make her climb down from the desk as she listens to her employee's lengthy explanation. Pink pays her no mind.

Yellow sighs. "The dullness of this exchange tires me. Just do you pathetic job for once, or I'll fire you and your entire family."

Her employee's voice drowns in a loud: "MOM!" as her six-year-old daughter climbs into her lap.

"Honey, give me a moment." With the phone locked between her ear and her shoulder, Yellow lifts the child from her lap and puts her down on the floor. Pink scrunches up her face and glares at her through her thick bangs.

"Just make it happen," Yellow finishes as she disconnects the call and leans back in her chair, putting one leg across the other.

With Blue out of town due to work obligations, Yellow is left with her daughter for the weekend. Blue's maid Azul takes care of Pink's needs but she has apparently failed to entertain her, Yellow notes. The child's hair is untamed and wild, surrounding her pointy, rosy face.

Pink gazes at the laptop on the desk with a childish expression of seriousness. "What are you doing?"

"I'm commanding the assistant manager to start the building expansion in South America."

"I wanna command a building expansion too!"

Yellow scrolls through her e-mails, annoyed by the incompetence they reveal. _If you want something done well, you have to do it yourself_. "You can command whatever you want, when you're running your own company."

"I wanna run a company! I wanna be a CEO too!" Pink exclaims.

Yellow proceeds to look through a report as Pink looks over her shoulder.

"I want a laptop too! It's not fair! I want one _now_!"

She sighs, remembering Blue's joy when Pink said her first words, " _I want!"_ Sometimes she wishes she had been the kind of child who always said the opposite.

"You can have one for your birthday."

Pink pouts, but seems content with the answer. A smile of excitement grows on her face.

"I wanna try!" She reaches forward and starts pushing buttons on the keyboard. A window closes and another one opens, and a dialogue box asks for an answer.

"Don't touch that!" Yellow explodes and yanks her away from the computer.

Pink grimaces. "Why not? I never get to do anything fun!"

Blue is always patient with her demands, but Yellow will not have it – Pink interrupting her call before had been reason enough for a scolding. "You don't know what you're doing," she snarls.

Pink stomps out of the room, clutching her arm. Yellow resumes answering her e-mails.

The silence is a nice change from hearing Pink run through the hallways, throw a ball through the kitchen window, almost drown the neighbor's dog in the swimming pool by accident or decorate her entire room, including herself, with glue and glitter.

Yellow had been less than amused when her daughter, resembling a fluffy disco ball, one day had stumbled up the stairs and proclaimed she couldn't see because of the glue in her lashes. Blue didn't reprimand her until after she had spent three hours trying to wash the glue from her daughter's body, with the maid's help. Pink decided to sleep in their bed that night, and Yellow had been sitting in several business meetings the following days with glitter in her hair.

But now it's too silent, and that is always a bad sign in the house where Pink lives.

A sudden loud crash from the main living room catches Yellow's attention. She gets to her feet, knowing her daughter has the ability to accidentally tear the house apart and get herself injured in the process.

"Do your job and look after her better," she reprimands the shy Azul as she passes her by. The maid nods and hurries after Pink, but Yellow gets there first.

Pink is balancing on the top of a eight foot tall book case, reaching for the window in the ceiling. The sturdy law books keep the case steady, but not for long. She keeps reaching for the handle as if she wants to open the window.

"Pink!" Yellow sees the books that have already fallen onto the floor with folded covers and the crushed oriental vase next to them.

Pink gives her one, short and very defying look and Yellow feels a pang of guilt. It's not only about the reaction from Blue that awaits her once she returns and finds out what Yellow's dismissal has done to both her books and her daughter.

Yellow puts her hands in her sides, using her most authoritative voice. "Get down from there right this instant!"

Pink takes no notice of her tone and gives her another look as if to say " _what are you gonna do about it?"_ before continuing to reach for the window. She grasps the handle, manages to turn it, and her hands find the window sill, as if she is trying to crawl out.

"What are you doing?" Yellow asks through her teeth, pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation.

"I'm gonna stand really far up so everyone can see me!" Pink says with a grin. "I'm gonna climb the roof!"

She braces herself to push herself through the window above her, but at the same time her foot slips and she has nothing to hold on to. With a startled yelp she loses her balance and falls backwards.

Yellow moves forward by pure reflex, reaching out her arms. Pink's sudden weight against her body causes her to stumble backwards a few steps, colliding with the couch with the small girl clutched in her arms. She is even more annoyed due to the adrenaline coursing through her, but can't find the words to scold her. She exhales slowly.

Pink giggles and latches onto Yellow's shirt in a hug. "It worked!"

Yellow looks down at her, steadying her with an arm around her before she gently puts her down on the floor. "What worked?"

"Nothing." Pink looks mischievously at her and Yellow strokes her unbrushed hair back from her face, without thinking. "Let's make a business deal."

Pink nods intensely, all ears.

"I have a spare laptop you can have," Yellow says. She can't help but give in, like always. "You can sit next to me and I'll show you some things when I have time."

Pink's eyes widen with excitement.

"But in exchange –" Yellow wags her finger sternly. "You will never climb the furniture or even try the roof again. And you let Blue comb your hair when she gets home."

Pink grins and shakes her hand with fervor, like she has seen her mother do on so many occasions. "Deal!"  
They walk back to the office and Yellow adjusts her steps so the skipping little girl can keep up.

Truly, sentimentality served no purpose, the older Yellow thought as she let her hand run across the surface of the heavy desk, then the contract in front of her.

The past should be buried, or better yet, demolished with excavators.

.

.

.

They sat on the beach, Steven with his legs crossed, Amy leaning back and staring oddly at the sky. As if they could pretend the previous day never took place if they didn't speak about it.

Pearl had still not returned and Lapis and Peri had gone home to their barn house, after telling Steven they would be just a phone call away if something happened.

"Did you talk to your dad?" Amy asked.

"I did," Steven mumbled. "It helped me… but he doesn't know much about mom. He only knew that she organized protests."

He remembered his father's words the day before, the way he smiled, carefree like always. "Rose never wanted to talk about the past," he had said, "so I didn't push her. She didn't know that I used to be Gregory DeMayo, but there was no need to."

Steven frowned. "Everyone always said such great things about mom."

Amy sat up, peering at him. "Maybe you just gotta decide for yourself what you think."

"But I don't know if she killed that Pink Diamandis! What if she did?"

"Hey, that's got nothing to do with you – not any of us. I had not even joined her back then." Amy ruffled his hair. "Don't worry, little man."

He thought about it for a moment, the shook his head.

"Steven." He turned around and there was Pearl, standing in the sand. Her face was worn and pale, her clothes wrinkled, but she smiled tiredly.

"Pearl!" He ran towards her and embraced her tightly. "I thought you were arrested!" He wiped happy tears away. "I thought – we thought -"

She embraced him back for a moment. "I'm not arrested. Not yet," she added quietly.

"That was so gangster, P!" Amy screeched, but was unable to hide her relief. "You could create a prison gang named The Crystal Gangsters and get star tattoos –"

"That's not funny, Amy," Pearl cut off, sounding like her old self, but Amy hugged her hard.

Steven beamed. "We gotta tell Garnet and Dad! They've been so worried about you!" He took her hand and pulled her back towards the house. "Pearl's back! Pearl's back!"

As soon as they entered the living room, still messy from the police search, Garnet dropped the box she was carrying and a wide smile spread on her face. She jumped over and lifted Pearl up, spinning her around for a moment before putting her down. "Welcome back!"

Pearl felt a bit wary after the long night she had spent outside – she couldn't find it in herself to go home straight away when they finally released her after the long hours at the police station. She knew they all had been worried about her, but she couldn't look them in the eyes yet.

"We could have picked you up," Greg said, in his usual honest, carefree way as he put a box full of stuff down on the floor. He usually stayed out of her way, but recently he had been trying to get on her good side. Now he smiled tentatively, as if he too was happy that she had returned.

In the past Pearl would only turn away and hardly bestow him with a glance, once it became clear where Rose's strongest affections lay. But Steven had made her warm up to him, ever so slowly.

She had never thought that she could survive the realization that Rose had fallen in love with Greg, so many years ago, but she had. Like every other thing that happened since Pearl met her, Rose always did what she wanted. She couldn't hate Greg for that, not anymore. Steven had helped mend that hurt, piece by piece. They both loved him, and he loved both of them.

During the long night alone, Pearl had thought about that, and the reason why this had to happen. She couldn't tell anyone the truth. There was no evidence left to show what happened, not since _that_ thing disappeared. If she had told the investigators without that, it would only lead to her arrest.

To scatter her thoughts, she started picking up the boxes, and Greg gratefully moved to the couch to rest for a bit. She felt more in tune with herself when she started putting back drawers in their places, organizing Steven's figurines according to size and color scheme and putting Rose's painting back on the wall with exact straightness. Amy rummaged through the fridge and Steven remained sitting on the floor, watching her move quickly and elegantly.

Pearl bent down to collect a bunch of stuff that had been emptied from Amy's boxes of garbage: various dusty and foul-smelling items she wished she could just throw out. But they were important to Amy, and Pearl let her have that little piece of a past to hold on to.

And there it was. As if it had just been waiting for her to discover it all these years.

Stiffly she bent down and picked the small, black device up. Holding it in her hand felt unreal, like being in a memory. The numbness still lingered from the previous day. And there, a clumsy, archaic charger.

She flinched when Steven's voice cut through her mind. "Pearl?"

She looked up, a bit confused. Garnet had gone outside and Amy had withdrawn into her room inside the temple. Greg was soundly asleep on the couch.

"You knew mom longer than anyone else, didn't you?"

"...Yes." She couldn't hide the pride in her tone.

"Who was she? What did she really do?" The doubt and hurt in Steven's voice hurt Pearl too.

It reminded her of the terrible argument they had had, back when he first started to learn about Rose. Pearl still regretted the words she had shouted, as she slammed her fist into the wall. " _You never even met her!"_

Maybe it was better this way.

"Pearl, you have to tell me!" He stood up. "You know the truth, don't you?"

She pressed her lips together, trying to remain composed. Only days before she had lectured him about the worth of doing the right thing. She had never felt so weak, breaking a sacred promise, but the expression in Steven's face weakened her resolve.

She handed him the phone and the charger, unable to look him in the eyes.

"Everything's in here," she said quietly. "I... can't tell you, not like this. But I can show you."

He plugged the phone into the charger and looked at the screen once the archaic device had buzzed to life. "A video?" Pearl silently left the room.

Steven sat down on the couch in the empty living room and pressed play.

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED.**

 **Author's Note: Yellow is really rational, huh (not!) Is there anyone more petty in the universe?  
**

 **Please drop me a review!**


	5. Part 5

**PART FIVE**

 _Yes, I will stand up high_  
 _And I wanna see you try_  
 _To bring me down  
But I'm not gonna let you cuz_  
 _I'm stronger than you_  
 _You know I'm stronger than you_ **  
 _\- Stronger, Megan Lee_  
**

* * *

 **Seventeen Years Earlier**

.

Pink lay on her back in the empty room. She blew a bubble with her gum, and then watched it pop. Again and again. It was addictive watching the thin pink form disappear into nothing.

The gum flavor disappeared hours ago, but it was something to do. She could feel it in her legs and fingertips, the deep, nagging restlessness that made her want to roll around and reach out her arms to make sure she had not turned into dust.

She felt like a part of the floorboards in the big, open space. Unmoving. Unblinking. Pop. Pop.

The rhythmic sound was the only noise in the entire universe. A single lamp in the ceiling. A thick window and a door locked from the outside with double locks.

The duller the hours dragged by, when it got darker outside and then light again, the more she felt herself change. The silence and the empty room pressed down on her, creating something new from the pressure. She could feel her skin harden and her hearing get sharper, her sight clearer. Her spine straightened and her body turned colder. She reacted to every single sound outside: a creaking floorboard became an earth quake. A voice from somewhere in the garden was a shout.

She crawled to the door, turning the handle, but it still wouldn't budge. "Mom, I didn't mean to do it. We were just playing, I swear! _Mom_ , tell her already!"

Dust particles floated by and she watched them attentively. Her nails felt harder when she pressed them against the window sill, and her knuckles stronger when she beat them against the door.

She was seventeen years old and diamond hard. Every last piece of naivety had been polished from her, every urge to submit had been worn down to nothing.

In her reflection in the window at night, she saw a new, different person. Someone who would fight until it was over. She was just waiting for the moment to strike, and the plan started taking form in her head.

Her hand clutched the necklace around her neck, as she saw the dark glower in her own eyes.

It was the damn old hag's fault. She probably ran out of things to do after she had her nails painted and added three layers of makeup that expired in the last century, so she decided to travel all the way here. Pink couldn't see it coming. Usually when she messed up, Yellow would sigh and and hold a speech about what she must not do and what she didn't understand, and Blue would reprimand her softly. None of them would ever do this to her.

For once, she was actually happy Pearl was not there now. The memory of Whitney's maid Blanca's face made her lungs twist. She needed to protect Pearl more than anything else.

Slow, chattering steps caught her attention. She instinctively backed away from the door, into the opposite corner of the room with her back against the wall. But she was not afraid. Whitney couldn't scratch more than her surface, even if she tried. She didn't need to rely on Yellow and Blue again. She was prepared.

All this endless waiting had prepared her.

.

On the other side of the door, Whitney stepped in front of Blue.

"You have to let her out already! It's been long enough!" Blue glared at her mother-in law. Her face had turned white underneath her complexion.

The older woman looked at her in her fuller height, her dark eyes glittering. "Pink stays there until she has learned her lesson."

"I can't let this go on!" Blue moved to unlock the heavy door but Whitney was quicker.

She grabbed Blue by the wrist and pushed her against the wall in one sudden movement. She leaned close until there were only a few inches between their faces and her tone was soft like a caress.

"Are you talking back to me, Blue?"

Blue tensed up. Whitney's claw-like hand tightened around her wrist, rubbing her skin against her bones. "Don't you forget where all of this came from." She smiled, and Blue felt her nauseating breath. "Your precious daughter wouldn't exist if I hadn't allowed it."

Whitney could break her wrist with the smallest movement if she tried to lunge for the door. She was a lioness with her teeth bared behind an inviting smile, and her eyes were set on Blue's throat.

Blue's eyes fluttered shut for a moment. _Yellow_ , she thought, _hurry._ She wasn't worried about herself, but Pink was vulnerable.

She braced herself to push Whitney out of the way, but the older woman pressed her more firmly against the wall. Her smile disappeared, making her pale face look terrifying. "Oh, dear. Remember your place."

Blue gritted her teeth. She could hear Yellow's steps on the bottom floor now, doors closing and opening – she had just returned from work.

Whitney leaned forward as she spoke very melodically, like a song. "Everything that happens to her is her own fault. She needs to learn."

"No," Blue snarled, finding the strength to twist her hand out from Whitney's grip. "I don't care what you do to your staff, but Pink's been punished enough! She was _led astray_!"

"Oh, there it is," Whitney said, and her bony hand stroked Blue's cheek. She sighed, as if she was an over-worked mother looking at the mess of her children. "You and Yelena are the same. Letting your flesh and blood come before everything else. _What_ a mess! But I must say I'm relieved. I thought you were thinking of adopting that pale little thing Pink fancies so much." Her tone masked contempt.

Blue frowned at the thought of Pearl, ignoring Whitney's use of the birth name Yellow hated so much. "We would never do such a thing! That would be very unsuitable."

Whitney smiled. "That's what I knew. Instead of giving Pink a sister, you gave her a servant. It's only fair, after all. We have the largest stock holdings in the hospital that pieced poor Pearl together back then."

She sharpened her last words like a knife before uttering them. Blue could see the harpoon approaching, tearing into her before Whitney had even parted her shiny lips.

"If you can't put this corporation first, then what use do I have for you? I made all of you. I can unmake you."

Her white silk dress flapped after her as she walked down the stairs.

Pink heard the steps of her grandmother disappearing and sank down to the floor again. The anger burned all other sensations away. Once again she had depended on someone else to take the blow.

She remembered that boy back in school, many years ago. His words. _"You're such a mommy's girl, aren't you? Running to them like a coward!"_

For a moment, she was twelve years old again.

.

Yellow and Blue takes a seat in the headmaster's office. The boy from Pink's class and his mother is already there, and at the opposite end of the table Pink glares into the polished surface.

"Is this necessary?" Yellow says cuttingly, in her most refined _I-want-to-speak-to-your-manager_ way. Being interrupted at work is one thing, but being asked to come all the way to Pink's school is another.

"Thank you for coming on such a short notice," the headmaster says nervously. "I've been informed that Pink has been in a fight with Kevin."

"She attacked him and gave him a black eye!" his mother exclaims and gestures accusingly at Pink. Kevin displays his bruised face as he turns to glare at her as well.

"This is a very serious incident," the headmaster continues. "Violence is never the answer and we expected Pink to use words instead of taking such measures."

Yellow looks sternly at her and Pink shrinks in her chair, unable to meet her gaze. They don't care about what she has done, only that she has hurt their _image_.

Blue looks at her, as if she is back in court listening to the prosecutors.

"What happened, Pink?" she asks, her tone is disapproving but soft.

Pink finally looks up, feeling her cheeks burn with shame and anger. Talking now will prove him right. She is a coward for not being able to handle this on her own. For depending on her parents to help her out of this situation, like usual.

But she remembers Whitney's claw-like nails against her chin and that there is no way to predict what she will do if she finds out that Pink has sullied the family name again, if Blue and Yellow are not on her side. Yet, she won't tell them about all the words that led to her pulling her fist back without thinking. She feels Kevin's eyes on her and knows that he knows it too.

"He said there's something wrong with me because I have two moms and no dad. That I'm a freak. And that's why I'm so short."

The mood in the room shifts. Now it's the boy's turn to glare into the table as his mother shifts uncomfortably.

Blue's eyes narrows to slits. Despite her casual dress and her long hair that she has let down, there is something regal about her when she turns towards the headmaster.

"You will have a lawsuit on your hands very shortly, Mr. Dewey. You will have to leave your position and your political campaign will be sorely compromised."

Yellow has tensed up next to her, and now her glare is directed at the boy. There are big sweat drops on the side of the headmaster's shiny forehead. He swallows and adjusts his tie.

"Mrs. Diamandis, I am sure we can resolve this -"

"I demand that boy be expelled at once!" Yellow explodes. She turns towards Kevin, looking at him with disgust. "As for _you_ , you'll be happy if you family gets away with a lawsuit for slander."

Pink can feel the victory now; her mothers' combined wrath is impossible to stand against. But she can't rejoice yet; in school the words will still be whispered after her for a long time. _Snitch.  
_

They boy's mother has paled. "Your daughter _hit_ my child!"

"And your son harassed mine!" Yellow slams her fist down on the table.

Kevin's mother looks at the headmaster for help, but he is busy adjusting his tie. "Mrs. and Mrs. Diamandis, thank you for your time. Kevin, please stay for a moment. We need to talk about your... school attendance."

Blue gives the other woman a look that could make water freeze. "We're finished here."

.

No, she would not hide behind anyone anymore. She could handle this on her own.

Pink turned towards the window and kicked her foot through it. Before her mother had time to protest from the other side of the door, she had climbed up the window sill. She swung her legs over it and jumped out, finally free.

.

 **Back To Present Time**

.

Steven plugged the phone into the charger and looked at the screen once the archaic device had finally buzzed to life.

It felt so unreal holding another object of hers in his hand, as if he had discovered a new part of her. She had left a lot of junk behind, he knew, and he and Greg found some of it from time to time. Mostly plastic flowers and once a stuffed toy lion that now resided in his bed. But this was different.

There was no password and the phone seemed to contain nothing but a few photos.

"A video?"

He sat down on the couch in the empty living room and pressed play.

It made his chest tighten when his mother appeared in the low-resolution image. She looked just the same as she did on all the photos she had seen of her.

Photos and stories of her glory days as a protester was all he had ever had of her. Everyone had told him how great she had been, how brave and loving she was, but it didn't make her feel more real. Hearing her voice was something different. It was soft and melodic, like she was singing. He had never heard anyone speak like that.

"Steven," she said. "Nora... I don't know yet who you will be. It's gonna be so exciting to find out!"

It felt like a lump had settled in his throat and he couldn't swallow.

"I hoped you would never have to see this, because it means I couldn't be there to tell you myself. But it's important." She spoke like she was confiding in him, telling him a secret. A sea of pink curls surrounded her face and she tilted the screen momentarily so he could catch a glimpse of her belly.

"This was supposed to be a thing in the past, but you deserve to know the truth if you want to." Her gaze flickered away for a moment. "I'm Rose today, but..."

She smiled a little, but it was a sad expression. "When I was born, I was given another name. I became... someone else. I want you to choose your own life, Steven, Nora – and that you will be free from the past. I wonder what you'll think, what you'll want, and how you will look at the world..." Now her smile was genuine. "I'm so happy for everyone who's going to know you. There is so much to see in this world!"

He could hear seagulls chirping in the background, as the waves touched the sand of Beach City. His mother had been here, not far from his house, recording. She seemed so calm and peaceful, like in the framed painting on the wall. She was above everything, both in her life and death.

"I'll always be a part of you. Every moment you love being yourself, and loving others, that's me loving you. Even if I don't make it, I want you to know this."

The image froze for a moment, and then she was gone.

He didn't realize he was crying until he raised his hand to wipe his eyes.

Using the buttons on the phone, he scrolled through the phone's photo album. He needed more, something to hold on to the feeling of her. A resounding disappointment hit him when he saw that there was only that video and a few pictures. Some of them were of random objects: a seagull zoomed in, Greg playing air guitar on the beach, a blurry image of her dress, Garnet and Amy posing with with wide smiles in front of the old temple.

Then, there were a few pictures that were completely different.

Pearl. Her light red hair was longer and unkempt and she was smiling wide with a pale flush on her cheeks. Next to her stood a young woman he barely recognized, with short and fluffy light hair.

It took him a few moments to realize that it _was_ his mother, standing next to Pearl with her arm around her waist. She was much thinner than on the pictures he had seen of Rose, her skin and eyes were darker, and her face smoother. She looked excited, posing and grinning as she took the selfie of them. Pearl looked at her with worship.

She was not Rose, but she was his mother. Comparing her face to the one on the wall, he knew it. His mother, wearing a diamond necklace he had heard about so many times.

This phone had belonged to Pink Diamandis.

It felt as if his body had been nailed to the couch, unable to connect his muscles to his brain. Greg snored calmly next to him, but his own heart was beating fast. His sight got blurry again, and when he blinked he saw Pearl stand in the doorway.

The expression in her face resembled his own. She walked over and knelt in front of him, taking his hands in her own. "I'm so sorry I didn't say anything sooner."

"Mom was Pink Diamandis." It wasn't a question, only a statement devoid of emotion.

She nodded, and looked away.

For a moment he thought of everything he had learned, of the past days' turmoil. He felt older than his ten years, like a man who had lived through a long life. Rose was not a newcomer without a past or a family. Pink - Rose - had been alive all along, until _him_. Rose was not a murderer.

"Why? Why did she pretend she was dead? Why didn't she tell her family?"

"She knew that they would never let her disappear just like that. They would track her down, and she would be stuck in a worse place than before." Pearl looked at her hands, her voice unusually low. "She made me promise to never utter a word to anyone. I... thought it was for the best. I thought that everything would be ruined if I did."

"Was she afraid of them?"

"Not of her parents. But Whitney Diamandis, her grandmother… she was not like them." She put her hands on his shoulders, looking straight at him. "Pink wanted to make her own decisions when she realized how their corporation was run. She did everything she could as a member of the family to stop it, but her status meant nothing to them. When they didn't listen to her, she became someone they couldn't ignore - their worst opponent."

He took in her words, and everything they had told him over the years. Pearl continued:

"When she became Rose, everything changed. She wanted to protect all the people that had been injured or killed in the diamond mining caused by the corporation, and the large areas of land that were obliterated for their purposes. And when it was over, she wanted to forget all about the past and live here with us."

The rest was known to him. He pulled up his shirt, seeing the slight pinkish birthmark that surrounded his naval. It was oddly shaped, almost like a soft-edged hexagon, as if someone had spilled liquid on his skin.

"Mom had the same one, didn't she?"

"Yes," Pearl said, a longing look in her eyes. "But she was always worried it would reveal her identity if she was ever captured, so she used to cover it up. She eventually got a tattoo to hide it."

She squeezed his hands. "Steven... I'm sorry for all of this."

He took her hand and gave her his most determined look. "We need to tell the others."

Like his mother, he had decided what to do and led her there. She followed, giving the portrait on the wall one last look. Rose's eyes were closed, her smile always present, as if she was approving of Pearl revealing her deepest secret in front of her image.

 _So this is what it's come to,_ Pearl thought. Whenever she closed her eyes, she could picture herself standing next to her beloved, waving their flag of unity and strength in front of the masses, Garnet and Bisma by their side. It was truly over, and there was no way back. Steven was the last piece that cemented it, his face always a reminder of who had come before him.

When he was born she had shut herself off from the world for months, grieving something that could never be mended. It was done and over with, and she had to be there for Steven now. But how could she ever truly leave Rose behind? The phone had been another sacred secret, that now was his too.

She had found her new purpose, at last. She had to protect Steven, protect him from the three looming figures out there. She knew the disaster their grief had left behind, the wasteland of nothing, their twisted agony for the lost heiress. It was the only threat that had ever shaken her to her core, watching her friends disappear back then.

When she remembered, she knew. _They_ were the ones who created Rose.

.

One single dial tone. An authoritative, nasal voice answers. "You have reached the Diamandis Corporation headquarters."

"I need to speak with Mrs. Diamandis."

"Who authorized you to make this call?" The secretary's voice grows shrill. Pearl has used Yellow's personal number.

A dismissive voice in the background makes Pearl tense up. "I'll take it from here."

"Yes?" Yellow's voice is short-spoken when she takes over the call. Demanding results.

"Um, Mrs. Diamandis... It's Pearl. Pink's friend," she says, knowing how insecure her voice sounds.

Yellow tone's changes slightly. "Why isn't she calling herself?"

"Well... she can't."

"What do you mean she can't?" Her tone makes Pearl inwardly flinch, grateful she isn't standing face to face with the woman.

"She lost her phone."

"Where is she?" Yellow snaps.

Pearl feels bad for doing this, but she has no choice. She knows she's expected to be there and prevent situations like these. "Her car is broken down and we're stranded..." She tells her the number of the nearest road sign that she memorized, giving away an approximate location.

Yellow mutters something about this being the absolutely _last_ cell phone she will replace this year, not to mention the car, and tells her to make sure Pink doesn't do anything reckless, before she abruptly hangs up.

When she turns around, she sees that Pink has come back.

"You called my mom," she says. There is no accusation in her tone, only resignation.

Pearl knows that Pink will be scolded, but she also knows that it will be worse if they can't get home tonight. It's already dark, and they shouldn't be alone by the side of the road somewhere out of town. They're sixteen years old but for all Pink's mothers care, they could just as well be six.

Pink is not concerned at all, as if she hasn't even considered the fact that they could be unsafe here. She looks at the sky and reaches out her arms. "I wanna sleep here tonight, under the stars! Far away from them and _her_."

Pearl sees the defeated expression in her, and she can't help but ask.

"... What happens when Whitney gets mad?"

Pink stiffens, but before she can answer, Pearl's phone rings. She recognizes the number on the screen and swallows hard before she passes the phone to Pink. Standing next to her, Pearl can hear the entire conversation.

"Pink! Are you alright? Yellow just called me. Did you crash your car?"

"We're fine. It was an accident! There was a squirrel on the road!"

Blue Diamandis' voice is very low, a tone she rarely uses with Pink – resounding disapproval. "You crashed your car because of an _animal_?"

"I just couldn't run over it!"

"That's no excuse. What were you thinking?" Blue's voice raises - Pink is not forgiven yet. "We'll talk about this once you get home. Yellow is on her way to pick you up. Stay where you are, and call me if anything happens!"

They wait in silence for a while. Pink doesn't look at Pearl. She is fidgeting, gazing at the enormous field next to them, the forest further away and the empty, dusty road reaching in both directions.

"Don't you ever wish you could run away?" she says at last, taking a step into the field and looking up at the starry night sky. "It's always 'don't do that', and 'let us handle this, Pink'!" Her impression of Yellow's voice is so spot on Pearl feels uneasy.

"Let's go into town tonight!" Pink continues and smiles brightly. "We'll find someone to give us a ride and we'll get far away from here. Think of all the places we could go!"

"Please, let's stay here," Pearl pleads. Pink looks as if she's about to run into the field and Pearl feels an intense need to stop her. To protect her from whatever she is about to do this time. "Your mother is on her way."

"That's the point." Pink sits down by the side of the road, seemingly resigning. She leans her chin in her hand and gazes at the pink wreckage in the ditch.

Eventually, the enormous SUV with its golden polish pulls up and Yellow gets out. She looks more tired than angry from her hours working overtime. "I had to leave an important meeting for this. Get in the car, both of you."

"No." Pink tries out the word, as if she has never used it before.

Yellow stands there for a moment. Pink gets up and faces her. "I'm gonna camp here tonight."

Pearl inwardly winces as she sees the expression in Yellow's eyes change. It's the last chance, they all know it. Yellow steps over to her, looming over her in her full height.

"You can't sleep alone in a field, Pink!"

"Why not?"

"Because I say so!" Yellow snarls. "Now you get into the car this instant. You're grounded."

"Why won't you ever listen to me?" Pink yells. "Why can't I ever get to decide - "

"Because you don't know what's best for you," Yellow cuts her off. Without further delay she grabs her arm and pulls her to the car. She's much stronger and unconcerned by Pink's protests. Pearl silently gets in next to her.

The ride home is tense. Yellow drives fast and aggressively and Pink is silently fuming, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Pearl suddenly wishes she had gone along with Pink's plan.

.

Pearl remembered when they went back to that field a few years later. They had crossed the large area, explored every pathway and the surrounding area, before they drove into town. It was another secret between the two of them, and with the wind in their hair and their hands intertwined, Pearl knew it was all worth it.

And now, their very last secret was out in the open.

* * *

 ** **TO BE CONTINUED.****

 **Author's note:** Drop me a review if you like it, it's my best motivation to keep on writing!

For the guest reviewer who asked if the characters still have gemstones: no, they don't. The Diamandis family wears corresponding necklaces instead and Steven has his birthmark like Pink/Rose.


	6. Part 6

**PART 6**

 _Let me show you the best in me  
Let me give you a reason to believe that I can stand tall  
And when I return  
And I'm more than you dreamed I'd be  
Maybe then you will realize that you never actually knew me at all  
\- **Let Me Make You Proud, Varian**  
_

* * *

 **Twenty-four years earlier**

Pink blinked slowly, waking from her slumber when a sound disturbed her. She tip-toed to her tall window and peered out.

The sound she heard was shouting. People were standing on the driveway down below, holding posters and signs. She rubbed her eyes, excited by something new to break the dullness, but the crowd was not happy.

She quietly made her way down the stairs, still in her pajamas, ignoring the way her headache pressed down on her skull. She felt uncomfortably hot and she knew was supposed to stay in bed until her fever dropped, but her curiosity always won. When she entered the kitchen she saw the maid Azul peer out through the window, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. She turned with surprise, but spoke with her usual quiet voice:

"Miss Pink? Do you need something?"

"No, it's fine." She peered out the window as well, reaching on her tip-toes. "Just don't tell Mom I was here, please."

She had a partial view of the driveway now, and more people had joined, waving their posters around. Their shouting had become louder, incoherent. She thought it was all a fever hallucination, but Azul had noticed it too: the upper part of her face was always covered by her short hair, but her mouth twisted into a tight frown. She glanced at the kitchen door. It was locked, just like the main entrance, but she didn't relax.

She flinched when Pink threw the kitchen door open and waved at the intruders. "Good morning!"

"Miss Pink, please stay inside -" she mumbled.

"I'm just gonna say hi," Pink said and stepped out in the garden. The fever made the world sway slightly.

When she looked up, the crowd was approaching her, men and women and even a few children, raising their banners high. "Justice for the workers in the mine collapse! They were caught like flies! They had no time to evacuate! Give them livable wages! Stop hollowing out our Earth!"

They closed in on her, shouting, and her headache pulsated like a hot string inside of her skull at the loud noise.

"What mine collapse?" Her ten-year-old self couldn't connect the dots, but it was not the first time strangers had approached her family. "What are you talking about?"

"This market is corrupt!" someone yelled right next to her. "They had no time to get out!"

Pink turned and ran back into the house. Once inside, she slammed the kitchen door shut behind her and tried to catch her breath. _What had just happened?_ She heard Azul on the floor above, talking to Yellow.

She needed to get upstairs before she was discovered, but the room swayed again. She had barely taken a few steps into the main room before her headache exploded like a thick, white-hot fog. She heard her heartbeat in her ears and couldn't keep her eyes open. Their loud voices still rung in her ears, pressing against her eardrums.

Someone approached and she realized she had sunk down to the floor. A heavenly cold hand pressed against her forehead. "Pink... I told you to stay in bed."

She tried to keep her eyes open as her mother lifted her up and carried her upstairs. She knew she was too old for being carried, and Yellow was the first one to agree, but this seemed to be an exception. "Who were they?" she mumbled, turning her head against Yellow's arm.

"Don't mind them."

"But they were here... they came all the way here... someone died..."

Yellow made an annoyed sound. "That happens all the time, when people don't do what they're told." Pink felt herself be put down in her bed and tucked in. She wanted to get up, but the tiredness had defeated her. Something was put in her mouth momentarily.

"You've got 105 degrees," her mother said disapprovingly. Her hand was on Pink's forehead again, and Pink grasped it and held it there. She felt the smooth texture of her skin and her golden wedding rings with the embedded diamonds, even cooler against her skin.

"Don't go," she demanded hoarsely, too tired to keep her eyes open. "You're so cold..."

She felt Yellow sit down next to her. "Fine. I'll have Azul bring you some more water and ice, and I'll make sure you drink it this time."

A nagging thought still lingered in Pink's mind. "Why were people here?" Her worlds felt slow, tumbled around.

"They are violent protesters," Yellow said, exhaling through her nose as if she was talking about a stain on the parquet floor that wouldn't fade. "The police are on their way to remove them."

Pink wanted to ask more, but couldn't fight the exhaustion. She leaned her weary head against Yellow's hand and gave in.

In her feverish dreams, she was standing on the driveway outside of her own house, waving a banner around. Through the window, Blue's maid and Yellow's secretary watched her. "The police are on their way," the decorative garden gnome said angrily. There were cars lining up on the street, taking the crowd away one by one, until Pink was the only one left.

When she woke up, it was silent outside and she was alone in the room.

Pink threw her covers aside and rushed over to the window, gazing down. The garden was empty like in her dream; only one banner was left abandoned in the driveway.

Azul was on her way to pick it up and throw it away, and Pink barely caught the words on the front:  
 _DIAMANDIS MINE COLLAPSE, 40 STILL MISSING.  
_

 _._

 **Present Time**

 _._

The four of them stood in the living room, and for a moment everything was quiet. Just a few minutes ago, Steven had hurried to get them into house, and Greg had left to give them some space. Steven had explained everything as well as he could, putting all the pieces together with Pearl's help. Amy was completely taken aback, and Garnet… just stood there.

"Lemme get this straight," Amy said as she flipped down on the couch. "Rose Quartz, leader of the protest organization, Steven's mom… was actually Pink Diamandis?"

"She faked her own death, and then created her new identity Rose," Steven explained.

"I made an oath to never tell anyone," Pearl added. "But now when Steven knows, I can tell you everything."

"Jeez… who could have known? What's next, did she invent cotton candy too?" Amy joked, rolled her eyes and elbowed Garnet. The other woman tensed up and turned away.

" _Rose_ …"

Steven saw the small changes in Garnet's face, felt it in the air, before her face twisted and she took a sudden, sharp breath. She wrapped her arms around herself as if to keep herself from physically falling apart. The expression on her face was that of excruciating pain.

"Garnet?" He was shocked, seeing the most composed person he knew crumble in front of his eyes.

"She lied to us," she whispered, staring at her shaking hands. "She looked us right in the eyes and told us she was going to bring that corporation down no matter what. She told us to never doubt who we are, when she was one of _them_ all along."

Tears streamed down her face as her composure broke. "She… she had everything – and she just _ran away_ from it."

"She tried –" Pearl begun, but Garnet cut her off sharply. "She sat in the courtrooms with us, she watched our _friends_ get deported and taken away because of the strike, and _she did nothing_."

Steven had never seen her like that – not even when they had encountered the woman, Cynthia, who had lost the power of speech and lived in an abandoned place outside of town. She had drawn pictures of her and Steven together, and she had accepted a bag of Chaaps as a token of their friendship, but she was terrified of the world. With a shaky hand, through her tears, she had written down her story in a handwriting Steven couldn't read. Pearl and Garnet had easily decoded it: she told them about how she lost her family in a mine accident owned by the Diamandis Corporation.

Not even then had Garnet lost it.

But now, her words sounded completely broken.

"We never questioned ourselves, or _her_. She _used_ us, smiling at us with those knowing eyes. Making us believe in a better future that wasn't real."

Her entire body was shaking. "And here we are – our friends killed, locked away forever, deported – _broken_."

She rushed towards the door, and before the rest of them had time to react, she had left the house behind. "Wait!" Steven yelled behind her, but she couldn't stay this time.

She ran across the empty beach with only the stars and moon to accompany her, far away from everything that reminded her of Rose.

Worst of all wasn't the betrayal – it was the deception. The sweet illusion that they had all been on the same side. She had blossomed thanks to Rose, finally broken through the concrete, but the one who put the concrete there in the first place were the ones who made Rose.

Everything Garnet had become, everything she had built, had been made of lies. She should have trusted the feelings that came over her every so often, the sense of disaster when their friends were sentenced, once after another.

Like a song she couldn't get out of her head, she remembered a line from one of Steven's favorite movies that he used to play on repeat when he was younger. _"Having information about the future can be extremely dangerous. Even if your intentions are good, it can backfire drastically."  
_  
Indeed that was the truth. All those misdirected intentions had led her to trust Rose blindly and never look into her. She had thought those sensations of danger were due to their opponents, but instead their own ranks had been infiltrated.

Of course Rose was a Diamandis – who else could lead like her? Who else had the means to do it? She wondered for a moment what Bisma would think. But Bisma was just another casualty in a maximum security prison somewhere, never to see the daylight again, or worse. And Pearl who was always so proud, flaunting around her connection with Rose – _of course_ she had known all along. Yet Garnet couldn't blame her.

She halted at a bus stop above town, and when she was finally able to think straight, she knew where she would go. She sank down on a bench with her arms around herself and tried not to break.

.

"Do you have some spare change, please?"

Garnet looks up at the passersby. She sits with her back against the wall of a building with an old blanket draped over her thighs. She needs to make it through just for another little while. Sleeping on park benches is nothing new to her, but once she gets enough, she will be able to move in with an acquaintance of an acquaintance. She doesn't know them, but it's a start to get a roof over her head.

She has been saving up for a long while, barely allowing herself to eat a meal a day, and she'll get that place and the mattress in time for winter. She has made it through so far by friendly tourists or passersby, offering her food and blankets. She has learned to survive, adapting like a chameleon to every new day. No one wants to hire someone who isn't allowed to stay in the country yet, someone who is so far outside the norm.

The day is coming to an end, the street is emptying of people, and she starts to prepare to pack up and move to a safe place to spend the night.

That's when she sees her, like a flash of color among the dull gray sky and buildings.

She stands out from the rest in her hot pink jacket. Her thick fluffy hair resembles Garnet's own, but in a much lighter shade, almost white. She seems to skip when she walks with her hands in her pockets, and she wears sparkly ballerina shoes. There is something childish about her, but it's obvious she's a teenager, maybe a bit younger than Garnet. Her eyes are framed with eyeliner, making them look even bigger.

The girl glances at her when she passes her by and halts her steps. Garnet leans back warily.

Her eyes widen at the sight of Garnet and an expression passes through her face. It's not the same suppressed guilt that some passersby have when they see her and turn their eyes away to spare themselves the discomfort. It's not the scorn or complete indifference she has seen in others. It's surprise.

The girl comes closer, her face is open and gentle. Garnet wonders if she'll express pity, a rare but always unwelcome approach. She is still wary, prepared for any surprise attack.

She sees the diamond necklace around the girl's thin neck and the glimmering jewels in her earlobes when she kneels down in front of Garnet. She reaches out her small hand, dressed in a silk glove. "Are you alright?"

No one has ever asked her that before. She looks up at the stranger, sees her concerned, yet childish-looking face. She nods at last. "Yes, miss."

The girl smiles, then glances at the worn blanket and the old newspapers. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it? Are you cold?"

"Pink."

A deep, majestic voice makes Garnet look up. A tall woman stands a bit behind the girl. Her dark blue dress almost looks royal, and her face shielded from view by her cape. "Let's go home."

Now Garnet spots the women in formal suits standing a bit further away, watching them closely. _Bodyguards?_ She tenses up, suddenly alarmed. _Who is she?_

Pink glances at them over her shoulder. "Don't mind them," she mutters as if she too is bothered by their presence. "Have you got any food?"

Garnet looks down into her almost empty cup. She can't trust her anymore. She sees it now, the cutting difference between them. This girl has truly no concept of being cold, or hungry. One of her gloves alone would be enough to secure food for the rest of the year. Garnet feels a sense of humiliation hit her hard, for allowing this girl to soothe her own conscience at her expense. "I'm fine, miss."

Pink quickly opens her little satin bag and pulls out one hundred-dollar bill, before stuffing it down Garnet's cup. "It's all I have on me now," she whispers. "Go have some fun."

"Pink." The woman in blue approaches them, and her tone is impatient now. The bodyguards follow behind, keeping a professional distance. Garnet catches a glimpse of the woman's face for the first time and sees the cold expression in her eyes when she glances at Garnet. She looks like a queen from ancient times, an empress with a large diamond necklace on her bosom.

"I'm on my way, mom." She looks at her one last time, and for a split second there is something between them, an exchange, as if the girl is wondering: _how did you end up here?_

If only she knew. If only she could see the world through Garnet's eyes, if she could see what Garnet sees when she looks at her. How easily their lives could have been swapped.

Pink's mother steps forward. "Move, before I call the police. You'll get arrested for this."

The bodyguards step closer, their eyes set on Garnet. The panic spreads inside, afraid they'll accuse her of stealing from the girl. She grasps her cup, shoves the blankets aside and runs for her life. When she glances back for a moment, she sees Pink look after her with a strange worried expression, but her mother holds her back with hand on her shoulder.

"Wait!" Pink calls after her. Garnet would feel contempt if she had the time to feel.

Fear flutters like a sharp-toothed butterfly in her stomach when she realizes that a bodyguard, and a stranger who's edged by the hunt, are pursuing her. She runs down an alley and round a few corners, feeling her lungs burn. When she finally thinks she is safe and hides behind a car, one of them spots her and shouts something. More people engage in the hunt, and Garnet feels her legs go numb, before almost collapsing in a staircase.

She doesn't dare to go back for the blanket, but she will need it for tonight. She's panting hard, and it takes several moments before she registers the low voice:

"Come on! You're safe here."

She looks around, and sees a small face blink at her through a window. "Wha -"

A door opens slightly and someone waves at her. "We saw what happened," another, brighter voice adds. "You can hide here."

Too numb and tired from the escape, Garnet enters the minimal apartment. It doesn't matter where she ends up – if this is her end, then so be it.

When her eyes have adjusted to the dimly lit room she sees her savior - a short woman with a sturdy build, dark brown hair and reddish skin. Next to her stands another short woman in a dress, with long hair and bangs covering her eyes. She smiles. "Welcome to our home."

The two of them stand side by side in front of her, holding hands, and Garnet gets a strange, warm feeling.

"That was awesome!" the one with the dark hair exclaims and pumps her fist in the air. "They looked like lost chickens, and you just ducked behind a car! You tricked those mighty guards good!"

Garnet feels the last strength leave her and sinks down on the nearest chair. The woman with the long hair brings a tray forward. "I had a feeling someone would come for a visit today," she smiles.

"You're always right, Sapphire!" Her partner looks proudly at her.

Sapphire blushes and strokes her bangs out of her face for a moment, and Garnet sees that she only has one eye – the other one is but a scar. "Aw, stop it."

They look so intensely in love, in a way Garnet has never seen before, and it warms her insides. For a moment she wants to cry, seeing the warmth and love that exists in this room, as if she has entered another world from the cold one out there. The cutting fear from the encounter with the cold woman fades away.

"I'm Ruby and this is my Sapphire!" Ruby introduces them with a wide grin. She presents their little two-room apartment, cozily decorated. They have a little space in the backyard where they use to stargaze together.

Garnet tells them her story while they drink tea, how she ended up alone in America when she fled from the war in her country, and they share their past – how they left their families behind in order to be together. Ruby's family was all marine soldiers and she was expected to be one as well. Sapphire came from a highly respected religious family, who disowned her the moment she told them about Ruby.

"So we fled," Sapphire finishes, but her tone is so warm when she glances at Ruby.

"We know about that woman who had you hunted down," Ruby says and crosses her short arms in front of her chest. "Blue Diamandis," she scowls, and Garnet notices the southern drawl in her voice. "Sapphire's family knew her."

Sapphire nods. "I met her a few times – she is a good friend of my father. Like him, she has no regard for human life."

"She's a killer," Ruby mutters through her teeth.

Garnet thinks of the hundred-dollar bill she got today and the high cost of it. She offers it to Ruby and Sapphire as thanks for their help, but they intensely decline.

"We don't want no money for doing what everyone should do!" Ruby says intensely.

"You can stay with us for as long as you need," Sapphire says and takes Garnet's hands in her own. "I know a place where you can work, if you want to."

Garnet feels tears filling her eyes at the selfless love they show, for each other, and for her. "Thank you," she whispers.

Sapphire pulls Ruby close and spins her around in their minimal living room. "Remember our first honeymoon?"

"How can I ever forget?" Ruby grins. "Keystone's finest." She turns to Garnet who is emptying the table from the dishes. "We collided by accident," she explains, laughing a little. "I kinda stranded her in this town..."

"And this is where I want to be." Sapphire kisses the palm of Ruby's hand. "You're my fate. We made something entirely new."

.

Garnet would always say that Ruby and Sapphire changed her for good. She ended up staying with them for two years, working alongside Ruby at a motel. Sapphire's ability to predict the future came well in handy, so they never were surprised by rain or unpleasant guests. She did fortune telling at night, accepting clients into their home. Garnet noted that she too had a strong sense of intuition, but Sapphire's ability was much more refined.

She never felt that she needed someone like they needed each other. She felt whole just by watching them. Ruby and Sapphire were truly, completely, two halves of a whole.

The first time she met Rose had been in a similar way.

She had been on her way home from work when she noticed a protest podium placed on a stage. There was a mass of people moving, shouting, and Garnet had been thrown to the side. She heard police sirens in the distance and instinctively took another route, hurrying between narrow alleyways, away from the sound.

She was busy looking over her shoulder, when she suddenly collided with someone and lost her balance.

Looking up in confusion she saw a thin, pale woman stand in front of her, extending a knife in her direction. She looked at Garnet through narrow blue eyes.

Garnet tried to back away, but hit the wall. "I didn't mean to – I'll go - "

"No, no, please," a soft voice said, and another woman appeared. "Are you alright?" She bent down and extended her hand, and Garnet warily accepted it.

Her pink hair flowed down her shoulders when she moved. There was something vaguely familiar about her face, and Garnet suddenly realized. She had seen her on the news. There she was - Rose Quartz, the leader of the riots and transnational Diamandis strike. The woman by her side relaxed slightly and put the weapon away.

"I'm happy to see you," Rose said heart-felt. She looked so young, despite the mature way in which she spoke and moved.

The way she looked at her, as if she was seeing a long lost friend again, reminded Garnet of Ruby and Sapphire and the immediate acceptance they had given her. She told them about her encounter with Rose the same night, and soon they became her closest allies.

.

Steven and Amy sat in the back of the van. Greg had put on some classic jams from the eighties in an attempt to cheer them up as he drove, but Steven couldn't relax. It had almost been a full day since Garnet left, but he was equally concerned with Amy's lack of reaction. Greg had been the one taking the news with the most ease; claiming again that his earlier identity as Gregory was history. Rose was the one he loved, and he always supported her cause.

"Amy… are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it, Ste-man." She shrugged. Pearl was at home, crying and unable to think straight, so Steven had asked his dad to drive them to Ruby and Sapphire's place. It was the only place they could think of where Garnet could have gone. Amy had tagged along, claiming she couldn't focus on her video game.

"But really, are you?"

"Yeah. I mean, I used to think me and Rose were the same... I was abandoned, and she was alone, and we made this family together. But it turned out she had a company associated with her name since she was born! Talk about being wanted, eh?"

He looked worriedly at her. "Amy…"

"I mean it. I'm fine." She looked at him, calmer than he had ever seen her before. "How do _you_ feel about all this? What Rose did is on her. It's not about me, or you or them. And I'm not gonna fall apart on you. I'm not gonna be like 'what about me'. I'm your friend forever." She gave him the wry smile he loved so much.

Steven laughed a little. "You know, that's the most mature thing I've ever heard you say." There had been so many instances where Amy had been the one losing her grip whenever the talk about the kindergarten came up, but this was new.

She snorted, then ruffled his hair. "Well, guess I have my days."

By the time they arrived to the small house outside of town, something felt different. As always Sapphire had expected their arrival, and stood on the front porch. One single stream of tears ran down her face as Steven ran out of the car to greet her.

"Where's Ruby?" He knew how inseparable they were, and there was no sight of his favorite angry aunt.

"She… needed some time for herself," Sapphire mumbled, half-choked. "Garnet is over there too."

The three of them followed Sapphire to the hill behind the house. Ruby sat with her legs dangling over the edge, gazing at the sky. Garnet sat next to her, unmoving like a statue.

"I brought some pizza," Greg tried and held up the boxes, but no one rejoiced. Steven sat down next to Garnet and Amy followed suit. Together, they watched the sea that surrounded the small town.

Steven didn't know what to say to make it better this time. For a while they all sat like that, and then there were light steps behind them in the grass, and a quiet voice.

"You deserve to know everything." They turned to look at Pearl, but she looked only at Garnet.

"You made the biggest difference. Before you, Rose was only fighting for the environment, and herself. But you changed everything. She wanted to fight for _you_ , for humans, for real. Maybe she was foolish… and maybe even selfish." Pearl crouched down behind them. "But she…"

"She was following us," Garnet mumbled. She looked at Pearl and smiled a little. "How could she not, when you swept her off her feet?"

"Me?" Pearl shook her head.

"Are you kidding? You were the one who showed her what real life was like!" Steven joined in.

Knowing what she knew now, it felt like Rose had spent the rest of her remaining life to make up for being Pink, and for things she had no control of. Garnet wondered if there even was something to forgive.

Nothing was forgotten, but Garnet felt a sense of calm when Steven hugged them both tightly, and Amy joined in. Ruby took Sapphire's hand and they looked at Beach City as the sun finally set.

.

They arrived home the next morning, and everything looked like usual on their peaceful side of the beach. The sun was bright on a cloudless sky and the sea was as dozy as ever. Ruby and Sapphire had stayed behind, needing to spend some time for themselves after the revelation.

There was a different sentiment in the air now, a lightness and odd relaxation. Garnet was calm again and Pearl seemed composed. Even Amy was mellower than usual.

"I wonder how we can move on from this," Pearl mumbled, still uneasy. "I wish I could have said something sooner about Rose, and Pink."

"Can't we just forget about those things for a little while? Let's do something fun!" Steven smiled despite it all. "Who's up for a game? "

They looked at him, saw how much he wanted give them all a break, not only for himself. Pearl couldn't help but adapt to his mood, and Garnet felt her heart ache for the boy who always tried to be so positive no matter what happened around love they felt for him was different than the one they all held for Rose. Garnet would never let her feelings for her cloud her devotion to the boy who had become like her son, just like he was to Pearl.

"Now everything's out in the open, so maybe it's better this way. About Pink and what she did… and all the pain…We can think about _us_ instead. Just for now?"

"Alright," Garnet smiled and Amy jumped up and down. "Baseball! Baseball!"

"I'm gonna go ask Lapis and Peri if they wanna join!" When he ran towards the end of the beach, he almost collided with the mailman.

"Jamie? Is there mail on the weekends now?"

The young man reached out his hand in his usual theatrical way, as if he was delivering his line on stage. "I was told it was very important that I delivered it personally."

Steven received the small, formal-looking letter. He handed it to Pearl, who was the one taking care of all correspondence. She frowned as she read it. "The state of Delmarva?"

Garnet stepped closer. Amy was occupied marking out the bases in the sand. "Get moving, crabs!"

"You are hereby given an eviction note to vacate the premises before July 31th, the premise owned by Diamandis Inc, in the city of Beach City, Delmarva…" Pearl took a shaky step backwards, staring at the paper in her hand. "They _own_ this area?"

"Why?" Garnet asked hard-set. "We have never missed a pay date." An old, uncomfortable sensation spread through her body as she read the note.

Steven had stopped to stare at them. "Guys, what's going on?"

Pearl tried to find her voice. "They're going to demolish this beach and half the town. We've been evicted."

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED.**

 **As usual, please leave me a review and let me know what you think!  
Finally Ruby, Sapphire and Centi joins the game~  
**


	7. Part 7

**PART 7**

 _What lengths would a mother not go for her child?  
There's a bond that exists between mother and child  
_ _Ah, but then again –_  
 _How would you know?_  
 ** _\- After All, Christine Ebersole_**

* * *

 **Fifteen Years Earlier  
**

They ran through the streets, staying close to buildings and parked cars. Panic laced Pearl's voice. "What do we do, Rose?"

Taking shelter in a shadowed corner they listened to the police sirens passing by."We need to lay low," Rose mumbled.

"We didn't do anything wrong," Garnet said through her teeth. "We were just protesting peacefully. We can't be responsible for others sabotaging for us! They make our entire cause look bad! We didn't start this war!"

They looked in all directions as they moved, hiding behind parked cars and dumpsters on their way to the nearest hideout. A few people who had been present at the protest and too had been surprised by the police were running behind them. There was a young woman neither Pearl or Garnet recognized, breathing uncomfortably loud as she tried to escape from the threat.

They had barely taken cover when sharp lights were turned in their direction and fell on some of the other protesters in the empty alleyway, catching them like deer in the headlights. "Hands above your heads!" someone yelled.

Crouched on the ground, Garnet, Pearl and Rose sat closely together behind a parked car, hiding from the police officers on the other side of the street. Dogs barked aggressively.

"It'll only be worse for you if you protect the guilty one!" a harsh voice shouted. "Drop your weapons!"

"We didn't do anything!" a woman, one of the protesters, shouted and took a few steps backwards. They could not see what she was doing from their place behind the car and all the trash, but heard her light running steps.

"Drop it!" a police officer shouted in panic. Rose grabbed Garnet and Pearl tightly and crouched down to the ground, and they heard the young, panicked woman from before: "Please, no! We're all gonna be -"

"Is that a phone?"

The blast sounded like an explosion, a sound that almost broke their eardrums, as if the sky had swallowed them whole. It took them all a while to realize that there had been an explosion along with the rain of bullets, white-hot, blasting the windows of the nearby building. Rose held on to Pearl and Garnet in a vice grip, shielding them with her body from raining debris, as she closed her eyes as tightly as she could. People screamed, car alarms blared. They felt the heatwave and the smell of smoke, as the parked car's window shattered above them from the impact of the blast.

Then, the world was silent.

After a while the three of them slowly opened their eyes, crouched together behind the car, their breathing stuck in their throats. Their eyes met, finally.

"Are you alright?" Rose whispered and slowly released her grip around them, her tired muscles aching. Pearl nodded vaguely and Garnet looked around for any traces of danger. They had been safe behind the parked car, and they were alone now.

There was debris and junk all over the street, and none of them needed to step closer to look at their former comrades and friends. Garnet turned away and silent tears ran down Pearl's face.

Heavy steps approaching from the street made them quickly crouch down behind the car again, not even daring to breathe.

The police officer's voice was dark and raspy, almost masculine. "They all deserve to be executed for whatever they did to that girl. If you see any of those rats, you shoot to kill. Got it?"

"Yes, ma'am," someone else answered.

"Do I look like a grandmother to you?" the voice snarled. "It's _Commander Jasper_ to you, runt. And when you find the leader, that _Rose_ … I want her alive. I'm going to deal with her personally. Yellow Diamandis' orders."

Pearl pressed her hands against her mouth in an attempt to keep from whimpering, while Garnet and Rose sat tightly together and held their breath.

They got a hint of the police officer when she walked closer, without taking notice of them. In the chaos and rubble left of the explosion, they were undetected. The police chief was muscular and tall, with long hair and tanned skin. Her face was scarred and her nose seemed missing, as if it had been burned away. She kicked a car tire on the ground. "Pathetic. This wasn't a hand grenade's doing. Those rats were armed to their teeth." Her heavy footsteps receded, and they were alone again.

When the three of them turned to stand, they spotted the scared woman from before sitting behind another burned car. Debris had fallen all over her but she didn't seem to care. "Thank goodness you're safe -" Rose stopped.

The woman sat with her legs against her chest and stared emptily in front of her. She had no visible injuries, but she wouldn't move. Rose knelt down in front of her as she dreadfully recognized her - she used to work under Yellow at the office. She must have been present during the protests, as a spectator perhaps, Rose couldn't imagine her ever rebelling against her employer.

"Are you hurt?"

Nerita's green eyes were strangely empty. When Rose leaned closer, Nerita suddenly bared her teeth and hissed before desperately trying to crawl backwards. She made a barking sound when her back hit the brick wall. Her eyes were wild and terrified.

"I'm not gonna hurt you, I promise. Please just let me make sure you're okay -"  
Rose spotted a small metallic piece on the ground in front of the older woman that she had dropped in her desperation, and picked it up. It was a dog tag like the one soldiers wore in the military.

"Cynthia?" she read and turned the little thing over. "Is your name really Cynthia? Or was it someone else -"

Nerita gave a shrill scream and threw herself at Rose with bared teeth, but Garnet was quicker. She grabbed the thin woman and locked her arms behind her back tightly, before lowering her to the ground gently but firmly.

"Don't hurt her! She's just confused and scared," Rose pleaded. "She must be in shock." Pearl had stepped in front of her as well, glaring at the stranger, ready to draw her makeshift weapon to defend Rose.

Nerita hissed threateningly at them, but she was shaking and her eyes were wide in fear. She made no attempt to fight back, so Garnett let go of her and they all stepped back. Rose carefully placed the dog tag on the ground in front of her and and Nerita grabbed it tightly before crawling away. A strange hissing, ripping sound left her throat.  
Shouts and the sound of approaching cars in the distance made them all flinch.

"We need to get out of here right now," Garnet said gravely.  
 _  
Oh Pink -_

They looked at the feral woman who had crawled in underneath a car. Rose knelt down by her and spoke gently: "I'll come back here tonight. If you want, I'll take you to a safe place then. I promise I'll help you if you let me."

 _Did you get everything o_ _ut of your system?_

The woman hissed and turned her eyes away. Rose stood up, unable to hold back her own tears. But there was no time to think as they escaped through the narrow streets and alleyways, anxiously looking over their shoulders. The world had gone completely silent after the blast, as if it was mourning everyone that had come between Pink and her family.

 _Did you have fun?_

Rose clenched her hands tightly, before wiping her tears away.

.

 **BACK TO PRESENT TIME**

.

Steven stared at Garnet and Pearl and the letter. "Guys, what's going on?"

Pearl tried to find her voice. "They're going to demolish this beach and half the town. We've been evicted."

A part of her had known all along that this day would come. The Diamandis would stop at nothing until everyone who had anything to do with their daughter's disappearance had been obliterated from the surface of the earth - literally.

"But we live here! This is our home!" Steven exclaimed. "I need to talk to the Diamandis family. If they could just listen to us - they need to know Pink wasn't murdered! And Pearl… you need to tell them you're innocent! You stood by her side and protected her all along!"

Pearl stood stiffly in the sand. She knew he was right, but the old fear came over her at the very mention of their name. She couldn't imagine actually talking to the Diamandis members, even less expecting them to listen to a word she had to say.

Garnet put a hand on her shoulder in wordless support, before looking at him. "Steven... please, listen to me. It's not a good idea. Getting involved with them is dangerous."

"It's the only idea we have!"

Now Amy had come to listen as well, and everyone looked at Garnet. She looked away for a moment. "I'm scared," she admitted, slowly, but honestly. "Blue Diamandis... I can't get near her."

"But I can talk to her! They're gonna destroy our home if we don't do something! I'm Pink's son, I need to set this right!"

They looked at Steven, the boy they co-raised with Greg all these years, the only one keeping them all together, their own little ball of sunshine. They saw the determination in him, that he wouldn't give up on this.

Pearl had taught him and Connie about the glory of dying for a cause, when she told them stories from the strike. She had wanted them to learn the worth of sacrifice to protect one's loved ones, and tried to make Connie a knight for Steven, following her own footsteps - the tool serving the cause. But Steven never really listened to that. Instead he embraced living for a cause, looking to Garnet instead of Pearl. Garnet was prepared to fight and protect everyone around her. And for the first time in those long years since Rose disappeared, Pearl understood.

They could not give up now. It was not a matter of dying for their friends, instead standing up together with them.

Pearl thought of Rose, as always, and she was the first one to speak up now, looking at Steven. "I'll come with you. I know where they live."

"Count me in," Amy spoke up.

Steven nodded, determined.

Garnet looked at him and made up her mind - despite her own fear, she would not let him down. "I'm coming too."

.

Greg pulled up on a street across from the enormous house, that was surrounded by a high white stone fence with security cameras.

"Oh boy... they must be afraid of burglars," he laughed nervously.

"Greg, you should stay out of this. The rest of us are already involved but you're Steven's father," Garnet said as they stepped out of his van. "We can't let you get in trouble."

"Isn't that exactly why I should come?"

"We can't risk you getting into any consequences," Pearl cut him off. "In case..."

"In case what?" Steven looked at her.

"In case they don't listen." She turned her eyes away, unable to hide the apprehension she felt.

"... I'll go park the car then," Greg gave in, giving one last long look at the fort that apparently was the Diamandis residence. "I'll be just a phone call away if you need me."

"See you later, Dad." Steven hugged him tightly. "Thanks for the ride."

Garnet, Pearl, Amy, Steven, Lapis and Peri stood on the street for a moment. Lapis had decided to come, despite her own fear - she planned to stay out of it but to be nearby just in case Steven would need her help. Peri on the other hand had no longer any fear for her former boss.

Pearl saw the familiar contours of the mansion. The large fence seemed to look down on them, and she knew that it had not been there before. For a moment she could see herself and Pink running across the street, playing around on a segway Pink owned, and colliding with a lamp post. She smiled a little at the memory, but her chest twisted.

She could see years of youthfulness and playfulness - Pink full of life and laughter and Pearl with her hands clasped in front of her, following her, smiling, cheeks blossoming.

"Look at this place!" Amy was already on her way towards the entrance.

"This is just one of their estates," Pearl said, snapping out of her daydream. "They have several residences in other continents and states as well."

"We can't just march in here." Garnet held out her arm to stop Amy. "If they see us, they'll send their security guards and have us escorted away and jailed before we have the time to say anything."

"So we need to sneak up on them and talk to them first?" Steven was already in on the plan, too excited.

"Steven's coming with me," Pearl said immediately, grabbing his hand. Garnet was about to protest, as she herself was the one most capable of defending Steven in an emergency, but couldn't argue with the desperation in Pearl's eyes.

"I'll stay on the outside and keep watch," Lapis said and decided the matter. "Wait - I'll stay with you!" Peri ran after her as she looked for a place to stay out of sight. Finally Lapis decided on a high tree with insight of the garden.

"We'll help you get in at the back entrance," Garnet said, acting against her instincts, but saw Steven's eyes light up.

"Like a ninja!"

"Not really," Pearl frowned.

Using nearby trees and the help of Garnet and Amy, Pearl climbed up and across the fence at the back of the house. Garnet lifted Steven up, and when Pearl helped him climb over the stone fence, they both lost their balance and fell down on the other side.

"Steven! Pearl!"

"We're alright!" he called, already on his feet. "Are you coming?"

"We need to find a way around," Amy said from the other side as a sharp barking interrupted the silence.  
"Where is it from?" Pearl looked around in a panic. "Steven, stay behind me!"

"It's over here, don't worry!" Amy called. "Nice doggy - whoa!"

Pearl and Steven backed away from the fence, and Steven saw the back entrance of the house - a large white door and a marble porch. In the garden there were roses, enormous marble statues, a little table and three chairs surrounding it.

"Pearl... Is this it?"

"Yes." She tensed up, looking at the entrance. "Steven, we need to wait for Garnet and Amy."

The barking on the other side of the fence continued, and the door to the house opened.  
Pearl and Steven froze, like deer in the headlights.

A tall woman stepped out in front of them. When her cape fell from her shoulders it revealed her long, white hair. Her face was set in stone, she had deep wrinkles and bags underneath her eyes, but it couldn't hide the majestic way in which she moved. She seemed to have an unusually long, thin neck, with a large diamond glimmering between her collarbones. The rest of her body was hidden behind a blue dress that flowed around her like a waterfall.

"What's all this barking for?" she mumbled to herself, as if she did not really expect an answer. Her voice was soft and melodic, yet drooping and heavy, almost sedating. "Emerald, come here."

The dog didn't return to her and kept on barking, and she looked up and spotted Pearl.

Something sparked in her eyes, and the heavy look in them turned into razor sharp ice. Her posture straightened up, her fists clenched.

Pearl still stood in front of Steven, mostly covering him from view. Blue Diamandis stepped forward just as Peri came running, breathing hard. "Wait for me!"

Blue's lips tightened to a thin line, looking at the three of them. "You're trespassing on our property. You're going to pay for this."

Steven stepped out from behind Pearl's stiff body, and and rushed forward. "Blue Diamandis, please listen -"

"Enough! I've had enough of you people! You deserve to be jailed, all of you." She whistled now, and the large dog from before came running, breathing heavily, jaws drooling and revealing sharp teeth. It stopped by her side and growled, waiting for Blue's command. Peri stood silent, pressed against the fence to be far away from the dog.

"Steven, get out of here!" Pearl pulled him behind her again, and Blue perched up. Her ice blue eyes met Pearl's and recognition swept over her face. "Pearl..." Her face distorted and tears filled her eyes.

"How _dare_ you show your face here? After everything we did for you! You cannot fathom how much I've mourned. What all these years of grief has done to me!" Blue wrung her hands, tears flowing down her cheeks.

As if the past sixteen years had meant nothing, Pearl felt so impossible small and worthless again. Her legs felt weak as she realized her mistake. "I'm sorry Steven. I never should have brought you," she whispered.

"You are nothing," Blue said, eyes burning. "None of you are. You're pathetic."

The dog rushed towards them but Steven had stepped in front of Pearl who was frozen in place. He brought up a branch and used it to fend off the animal. Peri rushed forward to help him, and threw a branch away. Emerald ran after it, as if it was just a game of fetch all of a sudden, drool running from her heavy jaws.

Pearl blinked, her knees was on the ground, her entire body felt weak. She was breathing so fast and hard she couldn't get enough air.

"Pearl! You need to get up!" She heard Steven's voice somewhere close, but was unable to focus.

"I can't… I'm not strong enough. I'm just Pearl."

 _I need someone to tell me what to do.  
_  
The tears ran down her face, dripping onto the ground in front of her, that faded in and out of focus as her breathing made the entire world shake. She was just an object, _ward of the state.  
_  
She was the nameless four-year-old that was rushed to the hospital after blunt head trauma and then lay in coma for a week, and never returned home. The foster child Pearl, to be replaced if she wasn't good enough, placed in a new family. Dependent on Rose or Garnet giving her directions. Always replaceable. She was only Pearl.

Had she ever made any decision of her own? Rose used to ask her what she'd like, what she dreamed of, what her preferences was, but she was happy to pick whatever Rose wanted.

Rose had said they were the same, but Pearl's difference from her was fundamental in a way she would never understand. Pink had been conceived in a woman who had the world at her fingertips, whose family planned carefully for her existence. They had planted her like a seed and reaped her in due time, and she was expected to continue a sacred heritage. Pearl was made as a reaction; an intruder in her mother's body, like a harsh grain of sand that the host body couldn't wait to get rid of fast enough.

Naturally, from the moment she met Pink, their roles were written. Pearl owned nothing and Pink owned the entire world. She thought of Rose, how she had swept Pearl off her feet, given her a purpose and a meaning. She thought of Pink's last moments and started crying harder, her legs and hands giving in, unable to raise herself up from the ground.

Then, a voice forcing into her consciousness. _Rose?_

"You can do it, Pearl!"

She couldn't see anything through the tears, but she recognized it as a beacon of light. "Steven..."

His voice, closer now. "You can't give up! I know you're strong, Pearl! You're strong in the real way!"

She forced herself to slow down her breathing, taking one deep shaky breath, then another, fighting against the lack of oxygen, wiping the tears out of her eyes. She grabbed something nearby, a branch, and supported herself against it.

Slow breaths. Counting down. Breathe. Just breathe.

She put on foot up on the ground, supported her weight with her hands, braced herself, and ever so slowly, like a tree in a hard wind, stood up.

She straightened up and held the branch like a spear. Steven's presence had reminded her that she needed to fight, for him if nothing else. For herself. "I'm Pearl," she repeated, tears filling her eyes again but this time they couldn't bring her to the ground. "And I'm someone."

She rushed forward, pushing Steven out of the way to help Peri to fend off the dog when it returned. Suddenly Amy came rushing with a force none of them had expected, pushing the dog away so hard it gave a yelp and set off running. Amy ran after it a bit, barking loudly. "Hah, who's the top dog now?"

"Blue Diamandis."

They all looked up at Garnet, walking with secure steps towards them, her voice loud and clear.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Blue snarled.

"I'm someone who will never be defeated. No matter the cruelty of people like you." Garnet smiled a little as she approached Blue, who stood frozen with narrowed eyes.

"I remember you. You're that... beggar who disrupted our walk."

Garnet sank to her knees in front of her and grabbed the hem of her long dress. "I used to be."

"You think I will have mercy on you because you cling to my feet?" Through the contempt, she almost seemed confused.

Garnet smiled a bit. "No, that's not it."

Steven looked up and saw Lapis sitting perched on top of the fence, looking fiercely at Blue. In her arms was a heavy, thick branch.

Blue raised her hand as if to slap her, when Garnet said: "I just needed to keep you from taking one step to the side." Then she dashed backwards in one quick movement.

Lapis Lazuli had spent many years being afraid. Only after she met Steven, the most unlikely encounter on the shore of Beach City, things had started to change. She didn't care much for his caretakers, but she had grown protective of him despite her own fears. Pearl and Garnet had first tried to keep Steven away from her, knowing her past. They had looked down on her, as if they never had had blood on their own hands.

She had been a witness - accomplice, as the verdict was - to a crime. As she let her anger get the best of her, she was kept isolated in prison. She had been numb for such a long time; volatile like the stormy sea. When she eventually was released to the general population in the max security prison, Jasper was there.

Jasper, the corrupt police officer who had worked directly underneath the Diamandis family and was proud of that fact. With her sturdy, tall build and wild mane of hair, everyone respected her. She had grabbed Lapis arm and pulled her close, the first time they laid eyes on each other. Her feral smile had set Lapis free and filled her with purpose.  
"You're with me now," was all Jasper said when they met.

For a while, Lapis had had all the power. It had been violent days, and the more fights she and Jasper got involved in when it came to the petty revenge that ruled the prison, the more time she had to spend in isolation as punishment. Jasper never forgot a wrong-doing and never forgave. The Diamandis family had thrown her under the bus and never cared to get her out of prison, but her loyalty to them never wavered.

It took Lapis years before she realized what Jasper had helped turn her into, what the two of them became together. A being who lost all control, a sharp-toothed monster with claws who crushed anyone in her way. As if her past, the injustice of her sentence in the first place, had clashed with Jasper's personality and created a toxic, fugitive reaction.

Yet Lapis blamed herself most of all. Despite their constant power struggle, she refused to let Jasper go, keeping her by her side no matter what it took - manipulation or raw strength. She was Jasper's girl, and despite the bruises it kept her feeling purposeful.

Not until Jasper was brought to the psychiatric ward after an overdose and Lapis once again was sent to months of isolation in a tiny cell, their connection broke. They finally fell apart, leaving toxic remains everywhere.

Only Steven had not judged her for that. Only Steven had tried to understand and not seen her as a monster.  
Only Steven had smiled at her, called her his beach summer fun buddy, given her something lighthearted to laugh about. He had seen someone else than the monster she saw when she looked into the mirror.

Her loyalty was with him now, and she would always defend him.

She raised her arms in the same moment Garnet dashed backwards, rising the heavy branch and flung it at Blue.  
The other woman looked up in confusion just as the branch knocked her to the ground.

Lapis jumped down and stood in front of her. "You're not the only one who's ever felt pain."

"You're here!" Steven called, relieved, as he and the others grouped up. Lapis smiled a little at him.

Blue lifted the branch away, a bit shaky. Her face was distorted, teeth gritted together as she stood up. Her hair was wild and messy around her face, eyes glowing with fury.

Lapis looked coldly at her. "You live here in your palace with enough money to wipe your ass with it. You've got the country's leaders under your thumb." She laughed once, dryly. "I spent ten years in prison for a crime I did not commit. You still think no one has ever had it worse than you."

Blue took a step backwards, eyes set to kill, when the door behind her was kicked open and Yellow Diamandis appeared.

The sense of victory they all had felt vanished in an instant when the tall, muscular woman stood next to Blue.  
Her tiger eyes were narrowed, looking more deadly than Steven had ever seen a human being look.

Seeing heavy branch in front of Blue and Lapis stance, Yellow pulled the slide back of the gun in her hand. Garnet tensed up - after Lapis attack the Diamandis family had legal rights to stand their ground.

The revenge was Yellow's to enact, just as much as it was Blue's.

All this because of Pink. She had never expected anyone to affect her in that way, not until after Pink was born and the papers had been signed, forever erasing Yellow's relative from their lives and making Yellow the lawful second parent of her. Not until then had she looked at her and seen her as her own.

But Pink was hers. The feeling had come over her with a strength she hadn't anticipated when she first saw her, that the tiny, oddly pink-tinted creature belonged to her too, rightfully, as she did to Blue. And there was an expression in Whitney's eyes, she remembered, perhaps calculating but nevertheless pleased when Yellow put the small child to her chest and cradled her. From that day on, Pink had her wrapped around her tiny little finger. Yellow had opened herself to her like she had to Blue - and they became the only ones in the entire universe that mattered.

Standing face to face with the ones who took her away, the ones protecting their murderous leader, with a little boy in the middle, she knew that there would be no mercy. She only had Blue left, and Blue would never let it go even if she watched them all perish. Blue's tears had dried now, revealing the aging woman she had become, desperately attempting to rid herself of her pain.

They stood side by side, ready to avenge their lost daughter. Yellow stared at the small boy, then noticed Pearl.

" _You_ ," she snarled. "You were with her. You were there when it happened."

Steven ran forward again. "Please listen to me! I am Pink Diamandis' son! She wasn't murdered!"

"She didn't have a son!" Blue yelled, her voice loud and cutting. "How _dare_ you come and make such claims -" Tears streamed down her face again.

Yellow's face was cold as ice. She raised the gun and aimed straight at them."Get off our property."

"Please," Steven begged. "Pink's fate is different than you think!"

"Impossible," Blue snapped. She looked at Pearl, who for the first time wasn't avoiding her eyes, instead keeping her head up in confidence, meeting her stare head on as she stood protectively next to Steven. "He's telling the truth," Pearl said loud and clear.

"She faked her own death!" Steven continued. "She is not alive but she - "

Yellow's face distorted, and she suddenly charged at him. He tried to back away, rising his arms in defense, when something bumped into him and a shot was heard.

It was completely silent for a moment.

Steven slowly opened his eyes, confused, blinked once and twice. His shirt had been pulled up when he fell, he realized with slight embarrassment, revealing his belly button birth mark. Pink's same birth mark.

Then he saw his family - Garnet, Pearl and Amy, all looking at him with wide eyes. And then, behind the rest, taller than all of them, Blue and Yellow Diamandis. Looking at him, leaning over him, their faces - worried?

New tears ran down Blue's face, her voice suddenly so soft and brittle it shocked him.

" _Pink_ …!"

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED.**

 ** ***Ruby voice*** What a turn of events!  
**

 **Review!**


	8. Part 8

**PART 8**

 _'Cause I am sleeping on a time bomb  
And I am waiting for the light to come  
You and I could get away now  
Do you know?  
_ **- _We Are, Vertical Horizon_** _  
_

 **Previous chapter:** Then he saw his family, all looking at him with wide eyes. And then, behind the rest, taller than all of them, Blue and Yellow Diamandis. New tears ran down Blue's face, her voice suddenly so soft and brittle it shocked him.

* * *

"Pink…!"

Motherhood was the strangest thing, the reason they were all here. It was the reason Steven opened his eyes with his hands across his birth mark and gazed at the women leaning over him with a strange expression.

How two strangers could look at his birth mark with so much concern, was hard to grasp.

For Pearl, having a mother had been a curse, a shadow looming over her childhood like Whitney had loomed over Pink's, tall and imposing. For Amy it was something unknown and for Garnet only a faint memory, left behind among war-torn memories. For all of them, this was something new.

Tears slowly slid down Blue's face. "You're Pink's... child," she whispered.

They stood gathered around the boy, while a faint blush rose on his cheeks from the attention.

Even Yellow felt like crying, if only because of Blue, but she shook the feeling off. Studying his face, they saw how similar he was to his mother. His hair had the same fluffy shape that would never lie flat against his head, his eyes had the same shape as hers, and his facial features were all hers, even the long eyelashes. But his hair was dark and his eyes a different color. The birth mark on his belly, however, was identical to Pink's.

"It's you," Blue said, her voice almost breaking before she fell to her knees in front of Steven. She reached out her arms to embrace him, and pulled him close.

Garnet was about to take a step forward, but Amy put a hand on her arm. "They're not going to hurt him, dude."

Blue hugged the boy to her chest, but he was stiff in his arms, his face wet from her tears, and he looked up at her and Yellow.

"So you are... Pink's mothers?"

"They never told you about us?" Yellow asked sharply, giving Garnet, Pearl and Amy an accusing look. "How could she do this to us? How could she let us think she was _dead_? All these years - all this time -" Her voice was too shrill.

Pearl turned her face away, unable to look the matriarch in the eyes.

"She died when I was born," he explained, like he had so many times before. "She choose to give up her life for mine."

More tears flowed down Blue's face and Yellow gently put a hand on her shoulder. She crouched down next to Blue, and they looked at their grandson – everything that remained of their lost child.

"You're a part of us," Blue whispered. "You're a Diamandis."

.

 **Twenty-Six Years Earlier**

The world outside was so much bigger than the safe bubble at Pink's home. She had not understood that her family was different, that _she_ was different than most kids around her, until she was seven years old. Aside from having a personal helipad, there was other things.

A winter afternoon both Yellow and Blue had taken some time off and brought Pink to an exclusive shopping mall. She immediately forgot all reprimands, impressed by the enormous chandelier in the ceiling, thousands of shining lights and the tall walls. She took a step forward, not knowing where she wanted to go first. Yellow's hand got a steady grip around the back of her jacket before she could run away to explore the mall.

"Not so fast," she said but her voice was not reprimanding, only distracted. She leaned closer to Blue, still keeping Pink from running out of sight, and stroked her wife's hair gently out of her eyes. Blue's hands settled on her shoulders. Their lives together had always been filled with obligations, but they found time now and then. Blue made a soft little sound and pressed up closer to Yellow. Yellow ignored Pink who huffed and crossed her tiny arms in front of her chest.

"Mooooooom..." She was addressing the both of them, naturally, but for once not even Blue looked at her.

Blue reached out and tenderly pulled Pink close. Yellow placed her arm around her daughter's shoulder and for a moment the three of them were one whole, standing close together. Pink giggled, secretly enjoying the attention of both her mothers. She knew she would get everything she wanted today. Yellow would sigh, but would swipe her golden credit card without complaint.

When they pulled apart Pink saw that a woman with two children had stopped and stood a few feet in front of them. She was frowning, her arms around the small children as if she wanted to shield them from something.

"Look, she has two moms!"

"Quiet!" the woman hissed and ushered the boys in front of her, glaring at them. "Do you know who they are? Don't let them hear you speak like that ever, or else we'll be sorry!" She turned away quickly, hurrying past before Blue and Yellow noticed what she said.

"Mom," Pink asked them both later, but tugged at Blue's designer bag knowing she was the most likely to answer, "Did I come out of an egg? Like a dinosaur?"

"Where did you get that idea?" Yellow frowned.

Pink thought of the toy she put in the sink at home and watched the plastic egg slowly break open in the water until the little yellow dinosaur appeared. She wondered if Blue and Yellow put an egg into the kitchen sink to hatch and patiently waited for her to pop out of it.

"Did I just appear like _pop_?"

Blue and Yellow exchanged a look. Finally Blue answered. "You grew for a long time in my belly before you were ready to come out. You know this."

"Don't I have a dad?"

Yellow sighed, irritated now. "No."

"But I _want_ one!"

 _Here we go again_ , Yellow thought. As soon as Pink found out there was something she didn't have, she decided to want it. It was all Blue's doing.

"You are mine and Blue's," she cut off before a tantrum developed.

"And Grandma's!" Pink added. "She says I'm hers too."

Blue and Yellow looked at each other again, before Yellow slowly nodded. "It's true."

Later that day, Pink climbed into Yellow's lap in the couch, a move she knew would capture her attention. Yellow looked over her head at the paperwork in front of her. "Yes, Pink?"

"Pearl says she doesn't have any mom or dad at all," the child mused. "Did _she_ hatch from an egg, like a bird?"

Yellow sighed. "No."

"Did you know gems are made in the ground?" Pink had already switched topic, as always eager to talk. "They just grown inside the _dirt,_ deep in the Earth's core! As if the Earth is an egg!"

Yellow looked at her rosy face. "Pink," she said. "Do you know what our company extracts?"

"Diamonds!" Pink exclaimed with starry eyes, her round cheeks glowing. "Opals and rubies and sapphires!" One of her hands cradled the natural pink gemstone around her neck, her birth gift.

Her mother nodded. "They're made in the ground, where they're mined from caves and veins inside rocks. That's not how you were made."

"Who made me then? Who put me in Blue's belly?"

"We did," Yellow snapped and pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "That's it."

"And you were very anticipated," Blue added with a smile, standing in the doorway. "There's only the four of us in the world."

Pink seemed content with the answer. She picked up two plastic eggs from her pocket and cradled them gently. Yellow raised her eyebrows.

"What is _that_?"

"Mini dinosaurs! I'm gonna hatch them now." She jumped down from Yellow's lap. "I can't wait to see them pop out! Pop goes the dinosaur!"

.

 **Present Time**

Sitting in front of his grandmothers in the large living area on the bottom floor of the house, Steven looked at their faces. He tried not to search for traces of his mother somewhere there, in their eyes and features. When he was younger he had looked for remains of her everywhere, and here they were, those who should resemble her the most, but didn't. Their facial expressions were marred with harsh lines, even now, not like the airy, soft expression on Rose's face on her painting.

They didn't _feel_ like his relatives, but he knew they were family. The situation was still tense, it felt unnatural to have this examination right now, but it had to be done. Lapis, Peri and Greg had joined them. Lapis stood stiffly behind Garnet and Pearl, while Greg, Peri and Amy had occupied one of the luxiorious couches.

"Pink faked her death," Steven explained again. "She lived in hiding for six years, surrounded by everyone she loved, and she was happy! She was the one who led the protests. When it was over, she decided to have me and then she passed away."

Blue looked surprised. "How did any of her... _associates_ make it out, after our strikes on the protesters? We used all our resources to get rid of them. Not to mention the ones suspected for her death."

"They weren't exactly... gone," Steven explained, noticing Garnet clenching her fists with emotion. Pearl turned away. "Many of them survived but they were broken. We could make it right, so they don't have to suffer!"

"Meet them?" Yellow frowned.

"You need to see them," Steven insisted. "You need to do something to help them, all of them who are still in prison or hiding, living in fear!"

"First things first," Yellow interjected. "We need to talk about your... custody situation, now when you've returned."

"He should live with us, of course." Blue said. "That is what Whitney expects. It could be just like the old days, now when we have a part of her back!"

"We raised Steven!" Pearl interjected suddenly, a tense flush on her pale face as she faced the matriarchs. "We love him, and we taught him everything!"

Blue looked at her, her face carefully neutral in Steven's presence but there was a scowl underneath.

"And my Dad did too!" Steven added.

"He is the youngest member of the Diamandis family," Yellow insisted sternly. "It is not suitable for him to live out there, in that awful state."

Garnet's low voice betrayed her barely contained resistance and aversion. " _Rose_ wanted _us_ to raise him."

"Legally, his father has full custody," Blue admitted, yet sounding doubtful of the fact.

Yellow continued exasperated: "His _father_ , does he even have a proper residence? Living in a van doesn't qualify as acceptable conditions for raising a child."

"Are _you_ sure about that?" Greg said, laughing nervously. Yellow gave him a look that made his shoulders shrink ever so slightly.

"My dad runs a car wash!" Steven interjected proudly. "He used to be a musician!"

"Fantastic." Yellow crossed her arms in front of her chest with narrowed eyes. "These _friends_ of Pink's…" She scowled. "They don't seem like a good influence."

"Yellow," Blue said gently, placing her hand on her wife's shoulder. "We have Pink's son now."

Steven stood up, looking at them. "We can't just sit here, we gotta help the protesters! They've been suffering for all those years, for a crime they didn't commit! None of them hurt Pink, they helped her! And those who are hurt, they need help!"

His grandmothers exchanged a look before Yellow spoke up, sounding a bit insecure for the first time. "We can't do much for them, on our own. Unless _she_ is willing to help, they cannot be released or pardoned. She is the one deciding all the legal affairs concerning the protests."

"Who? Who do we need?" He stared at them, raising his voice.

Yellow shot him a slightly annoyed look. " _Whitney_ , of course! She has the absolute authority. I can only stop the demolition of your beach."

"Whitney Diamandis," Pearl mumbled.

"Then I need to talk to her! I need to let her know what happened!"

"Whitney… can be difficult." Blue looked to the side. "She never changes her mind once she has made it up. She's always in her own head these days, ever since Pink..."

"Steven…" Pearl knelt down in front of him, putting her hands on his shoulders. "She is not like any person you've met before. She is not like _them_. She has different methods to get what she wants."

"I don't care! I just wanna talk!"

Yellow and Blue watched them, Yellow still stern and Blue mournful.

"We can't keep it from her forever," Yellow said at last. "She needs to know."

Steven turned to Pearl and Garnet, pleading with them. "The sooner we can help everyone, the better!"

"The sooner she finds out about Steven, the better," Blue agreed. "She won't be happy if she finds out that we've kept this from her."

Steven nodded. "So where is she?"

"Whitney's main quarters is located across the country," Yellow said. "We can take our private jet tomorrow."

Garnet and Pearl stood side by side, not speaking but sharing the same worry.

"And they need to come with me!" Steven pointed at Garnet, Pearl and Amy, his family.

After another exchanged, Yellow nodded sternly. Blue sighed.

"It's decided, then."

.

Early in the next morning, they stood in front of the private jet, waiting for the preparations to be finished so they could board. Lapis and Peri would stay behind with Greg – they all agreed it was too risky to come in a big group, wanting to make the situation less fugitive.

"Can we do this?" Pearl spoke to Garnet, as Steven was hugging Lapis, Peri and Greg goodbye. "You know we're sending him straight into the lion's den."

"He's not alone," she replied just as quietly. "It's the only thing we can do, to be there for him."

After Greg finished hugging his son, he looked at his guardians with equal concern. "Should I be worried?"

"We won't let anything happen to Steven," Garnet reassured him. "He'll be fine."

"This is like a diplomatic mission!" Steven exclaimed. "We just need to explain to her what happened!"

"We'll be at the home base if you need us," Lapis said to Steven. "We'll look after things at home until you're back."

Yellow crossed her arms, once again annoyed at the entourage. Blue only smiled, looking at Steven fondly.

Pearl was the last one to board the flight, trying to focus on Steven's determined anticipation, Amy's laid-back sleepiness, and the restrained calm coming from Garnet, but they both knew that there was no turning back. Being in the presence of Yellow and Blue was one thing, knowing this peace was fragile as dust, but letting Steven close to the ones his mother had fled from, to let him enter the grip of _that_ woman, was a gamble.

As the jet took flight in tense silence, Pearl could only focus on Steven sitting between his grandmothers, concentrated but light-hearted.

She couldn't bring it out of her mind, what Rose would think if she knew what her son was going to do.

.

 **Thirteen Years Earlier**

They couldn't avoid it forever. On the way home from the convenience store, like so many other places, they passed by a large Diamandis insignia, covering the entire side of a building. Three colors in a splendid triangle formation.

Rose stood there, glancing at it for a moment before she kept on walking, keeping her shoulders straight. Pearl, however, lingered. She felt herself shying away from the insignia as if it could physically threaten her, but a sinking feeling settled in her stomach.

How long had it been – three and a half years? The pink part of the insignia had been removed, redesigned. _Did they really want to erase her that badly?_

She looked at Rose, as if to ask for direction, how to react. But Rose had turned her back away, like she always did. When Pearl glanced sideways, there was a large photograph of Yelena Diamandis on another building, declaring that Yellow was going to run for office.

When Rose turned to call for Pearl, she spotted it too. Her face betrayed nothing, but her eyes darkened. Her lips moved to utter something, almost unnoticeable, but Pearl saw it, accustomed to read every shift in Rose's face.

The same old doubt and regret settled in in Pearl's mind – _we were so young, what were we thinking?_ But every time she looked at Rose, she was sure. Rose knew what she was doing. Pearl might not understand all of her choices – her inclination towards that Greg, for example, but she trusted her blindly.

"I wish I didn't remember what she looked like," Rose muttered, and took Pearl's hand in hers gently, giving her a wry smile. "You're lucky."

The pained expression in her eyes didn't fade. The word Rose had uttered lingered at the imposing, cold image of the Diamandis matriarch.  
 _  
Mother._

Pearl smiled back, but it didn't feel like their usual exchanges of affection. If their situations had been reversed – no, Pearl could not even imagine that, having a _choice._ The memory fluttered back up, like all of the bad ones often did, that she had built and formed herself around, navigating through something that was too messy too look at clearly. It had been a war even recently, during the protests and the trials, but things were calming down. If only it wasn't for Greg, everything would be _perfect_.

Pearl had always _belonged_ to her mother like Pink had belonged to Whitney Diamandis. The ones who had freed Pearl had given her to Pink instead.

They passed another enormous portrait of Whitney Diamandis. Large pale eyes watching the world she wanted to own, framed by thick, black lashes. Rose kept her gaze firmly ahead.

"Rose?"

A few steps further ahead she stopped. "Yes, Pearl?"

"I know what we said. I promised and I will honor that forever. But…"

"Don't worry about it, Pearl. It's all in the past."

A frown had appeared on Rose's face when she stopped to look at the enormous poster. Pearl felt the apprehension as if it was her own, seeing that face guarding the city, the world, from her picture. "Maybe -"

"What would be the point of talking about anything?"

Pearl had never heard her sound so harsh. For a moment she was just Pink again, with clenched fists and tense shoulders, tears spilling down her cheeks in that room. Unable to express herself, unable to break free, unable to move forward.

Pearl wanted to reach out and touch her, instinctively comfort like she had always done, but for some reason she stopped halfway.

"Talk to me, Rose," Pearl said, her heart clenching, wanting desperately to help. "You don't have to be alone."

"Stop it!" Rose turned around with a look in her eyes that made Pearl instinctively flinch and take a step backwards – despite knowing what a hurtful reaction it was, even shameful – but it was still there. For a moment the power of Pink's lineage lingered in that gaze.

"It's over. We're free… Let's go home."

Rose walked a few steps ahead, letting her hair shield her face from view. They never did leave her alone, Pearl knew that. They weren't only flowing in her veins, they were at every corner. She could only imagine what memory was resurfacing again. Pearl knew of most of those memories.

 _She turned her face towards the light, cheeks streaked with tears._

" _Grandmother…"_

" _You know I would kill for you, Pink," the cheerful voice said, reaching out a hand and wiping a tear away, sharp nails resting lightly at her cheeks. "You are a part of me, after all. But if you don't listen, I will have to make you. No one wants to see you making such a face."_

Rose didn't know why she was running, suddenly – _that_ was all in the past. She had become the protector, not only of her closest friends, but of everyone she saw. She would always step in, speak up and act, for all the times she couldn't, didn't.

She stopped when she reached the calm beach, and her tears were flowing without restraint; wiping them away was useless. She thought of Blue and Yellow, and that room - and then she couldn't stop. But Pearl was there. She was patient, standing behind her, waiting silently for her to regain her composure. To pick up the pieces and play the charade, because it made them both feel better.

Rose couldn't look her in the eyes. "How can you stand me?"

Pearl eyes were filled with tears too. "How could I not love you?"

And Rose wrapped her arms around Pearl without a word.

* * *

 **TO BE CONTINUED.**

 **Author's Note:** Wow, this brings me out of a writer's block that lasted almost a year, and it's been terrible. I am so glad it's over! Thank you all for your patience and I'm sorry for the long wait! It was so hard to consider all the aspects of the canon with the human AU so I almost gave up, until I decided that it's better to finish it than not finishing it at all. So this is what you got. As always, your feedback keeps me going!


End file.
